A Little Help
by catmilk
Summary: John and Mary pass away in a car accident and Molly and Sherlock are given custody of their infant child, Charlotte.
1. Chapter 1

_I feel like I'm posting up to many stories, I hope they don't come and bit me in the arse later. My mom actually gave me the idea to write this story, she's a huuuge Sherlolly shipper and she thought it would be interesting to put Molly and Sherlock in this situation. I'm sorry for killing John and Mary, I love them so much and I didn't want to do it, but for the sake of the plot I had to kill them. I'm a murderer! Don't hate me!_

_If you recognize them I don't own them, obviously._

_Feel free to review! Enjoy chapter one!_

* * *

Molly Hooper let out a sleepy groan as her phone rang loudly, she slowly opened her eyes after her fail attempt to grab her mobile from the night stand. She squinted at the bright light as she read the familiar number of DI Lestrade flash up on the screen she quickly wondered what he wanted this time, perhaps it was another late night case, those had occurred a lot lately, she'd have to drag her arse out of her warm bed and go all the way to Bart's simply because Sherlock couldn't wait until morning. Molly let out a tired sigh and answered her mobile; she placed the cold device on against her warm cheek and spoke.

"Yes? What is it?" she croaked tiredly.

"Hello? Molly? It's Greg. Greg Lestrade, sorry to call you at such an inconvenient hour I'm sure you're tired of me doing this..."

Molly mentally blocked him out , he was a nice man a bit chatty especially when she was tired he always had a habit of getting side tracked when she just wanted him to get to the point so she could get hang up.

"Molly are you still there?"

"Uh, yes. I'm sorry." she murmured.

"Did you hear what I said?"

Molly remained quiet but she could hear him on the other end, he let out a sigh before speaking.

"Mary and John got in a car accident..." he said.

"What!?"

Molly quickly sat up on the bed she threw the duvet off her body and stood up, "Are they alright!? What happened!?"

"Molly... I think you should come to Bart's..." he sounded quieter... sadder, a lump formed in Molly's throat and she quickly hurried to change.

"I'll be there soon."

* * *

_Eight Months Earlier_

"Sherlock? Are you here?" called the familiar voice of John Watson.

Sherlock laid on the couch in his very common, very familiar "thinking position" his fingers twitched lightly as he heard John's voice by the door, his soft footsteps began making his way further inside the flat until they stopped a few centimeters away from him. Sherlock opened one eye to look up at the sandy-haired man.

"Of course I'm here, John. It's not like I have a case or anything." he said rather bitterly.

John chuckled lightly before turning on his heel and walking to the kitchen, "Have you eaten?" he called out.

"Just tell me what you want." said Sherlock as he stood up.

The consulting detective stood up and pulled up the sleeve of his blue robe before making his way to his friend. John stared at him as he made his way towards him and smiled,

"Why do you think I'm here for something? Can't I just be a friend visiting another friend?"

John walked into the kitchen and began busying himself with preparing them tea.

"Obviously you're not here for a friendly visit." stated Sherlock.

"What makes you say that?" replied the doctor.

Sherlock listened to the clatter of dishes in the kitchen and plopped himself down in his chair, "You've been rather busy with the baby. It's been two months now? Since she was born and you've hardly come to pay me a visit so clearly you're here for something else."

John made his way to the living room with two mugs of tea and handed one to Sherlock before sitting down in his old chair, "Alright, you caught me." he said before taking a sip of his tea, "I'm actually here to ask you something."

Sherlock rolled his eyes as he took a swallow of his tea, "What is it, John?" Sherlock observed him now, he was nervous, but why? Clearly whatever he wanted to ask him was important. He was trying to find the right way to tell him, concluded Sherlock.

"Well, Mary and I... We've both discussed this for weeks now and..."

"John, please do hurry this up." said Sherlock with a hint of irritation.

"We've come to an agreement that we want you to be Charlotte's guardian."

Sherlock made a face before speaking, "What? Why me? I am hardly capable of taking care of a child, John. I am not a suitable candidate to be someone's _guardian._" he scoffed.

"We know that's why we made Molly, Charlie's other guardian."

"Molly?"

"Yes Sherlock, you know Molly." he sighed.

"Of course I know her... Why her?"

John took a sip of his tea and rubbed the bridge of his nose, "You know she's known Mary since they were both children. They're like sisters and Mary trusts her. Plus, Mary's mum is sick so we can't have her as a guardian and Harry already refused so the only other people we trust with Charlie are you and Molly"

Sherlock rolled his eyes and leaned back on his chair, "What would I have to do?" he asked curiously.

"Nothing, we're just doing this as a precaution in case... In case something ever happened to either Mary or me."

"Highly unlikely." muttered Sherlock.

"I do need you to sign something, though."

With that John hopped out of his chair and set the mug down, he hurried to the kitchen table and grabbed a manila folder and hurried back to Sherlock's side.

"I need you to sign this form saying you agree to be Charlie's guardian."

Sherlock snatched the folder from his grasp and scanned it before opening it, he read through the print stating that if by reason Mary or John could no longer care for their daughter then Sherlock... and Molly would take over. Sherlock looked down at the bottom of the page to see Molly's signature already on it.

"Molly already agreed?" he said without looking up.

"Uh, yes. She came over for tea yesterday and we talked to her about it."

Sherlock nodded before meeting John's eyes, "Since it's only a precaution and there's a slim chance that anything would ever happen to you _or _Mary, I agree to be Charlotte's guardian."

"You will?"

"Now give me a pen before I change my mind."

John quickly scrambled out of his seat and went to look for a pen, after rummaging around the flat he finally found one and handed it to Sherlock. The dark-haired man let out a huff of air before signing his name under Molly's.

"There you go." he said as he handed John the folder.

The sandy-haired man gave him a big smile, "You don't know how much this mean to us, Sherlock. Thank you."

"There's no need to thank me. It's only a precaution after all."

"Only a precaution." repeated John.

* * *

_Present_

Molly hurried down the familiar corridors of St. Bart's hospital she spotted Lestrade further down clutching a crying Charlotte in his arms. She could see his face relax as soon as she spotted her.

"Molly, I'm so glad you're here." he sighed in relief.

Molly stretched out her arms to take the crying baby from him, she whispered soft words to the crying girl and slowly bounced her up and down until her tears reduced, she kissed the top of the young girl's head before looking up at Lestrade with sad eyes.

"What happened?"

Greg rubbed his eyes tiredly before speaking, "They were driving back from Cardiff when a...drunk driver hit them. All three of them were in the car, luckily Charlie here made it out safely."

Molly took a closer look at Charlotte, there was a few scratch and bruises but nothing that wouldn't heal with time. Molly licked her lips nervously, she was afraid to ask the next question.

"What about... John and Mary?"

Greg gave her a sad expression and shook his head, "They... They didn't make it."

Molly couldn't believe it, she handed Charlotte over to Lestrade, for fear that she might drop her, the pathologist sat down and pressed her hands into her face. She took deep breaths trying to calm herself down, but it wasn't doing her much good tears pooled at her eyes and began running down her cheek. She couldn't believe it, two of the most wonderful people gone, gone forever. Greg patted her shoulder gently and sat down beside her; Charlotte began fussing and suddenly began to cry. This caused Molly to look up at the tiny girl and take her from his arms,

"Poor Charlie." she whispered, she began patting her back lightly trying to calm her down when she finally did she nuzzled herself on the crook of Molly's neck and fell asleep.

"No child should go without their parents." said Greg.

"What are we going to do?" she asked him curiously.

"Well Charlie will have to be handed over to CPS."

"What!? Why?"

"Only until we figure out who she will be going to."

"Molly and I are her legal guardians." said a baritone voice suddenly.

Both Molly and Lestrade looked up to see Sherlock; he wasn't looking at them rather at a sleeping Charlotte in Molly's arms.

"What?" said Lestrade suddenly, "_You!?_ Charlotte's guardian?"

"Yes, John and Mary entrusted us to care for their daughter if anything were to happen to them. Isn't that right Molly?"

Molly nodded absent mindedly before opening her mouth to speak, "Y-Yes, Sherlock is right. We are Charlie's guardians I'm sure you can call some people if you need proper documentations." she told him.

"I'm sure you have a few phone calls to make, Lestrade. For now Molly and I will be taking Charlotte with us. Come along, Molly."

"Where are we going?"

"Molly don't ask stupid questions." He snapped.

Molly opened her mouth but quickly clamped it shut and stood up, there was no point in arguing with Sherlock especially right now... Molly took a tighter hold of Charlotte and looked at Lestrade, he was on his phone now talking rapidly to someone on the other end. She turned to face Sherlock but he was already striding down the hall.


	2. Chapter 2

_Hello readers, I hope you're enjoying the story, I'm sorry if I made some of you sad by killing John and Mary I didn't want to do it! I love them so much! I want to thank those of you who reviewed the first chapter and all of you who are following the story! Thank you! I hope you like chapter two!  
_

* * *

"Female age thirty-nine. Neck and cranium injuries, cause of death...head trauma."

Molly's voice echoed through the quiet morgue, the young pathologist looked down at the body that was once her best friend, she could see a few tears drip into her glasses, she let out a huff of air and removed her gloves.

"Also my best friend..." she muttered quietly.

"Molly are you sure you're alright?" called Stamford from the door.

Molly jumped up at the sound of Stamford's voice, she quickly removed her reading glasses and wiped them clean, "Yeah, I'm fine..." she murmured quietly.

"I know... I know this is hard for you it's hard for all of us... If you need to talk, my door is always open."

Molly wiped tears out of her face and put on her glasses, "Thank you." she said kindly.

Stamford lingered for a few moments before walking further into the morgue, Molly wrote down a few things on Mary's file and covered her up**— **It was strange seeing Mary so... lifeless, it hadn't been easier when she saw John, but it had to be done and now the bodies were ready to be released to their families...

"How's Charlie doing?" asked Stamford.

Molly looked up from her writing, "She's doing pretty well she's with Mrs. Hudson…she often babysat her for John and Mary so there was a place for her to sleep... I haven't gotten around to going to John and Mary's... I don't know if I can bring myself to go just yet."

It had been three days since Mary and John's death and three days since she and Sherlock had gotten custody of Charlie, the pathologist closed Mary's file and let out a sigh, "They're ready to be released." she stated.

Stamford nodded and took the files, "How's Sherlock doing?" he asked curiously.

Molly chewed on her lower lip before replying, "I don't know, he's been in his 'mind palace' I can't get a word out of him."

"He just lost his best friend; he needs time to...cope."

Molly nodded and looked over at the form of John Watson she let out a sigh before turning to look at Stamford, "I think that's what we all need... A little time."

* * *

Molly cradled a sleeping Charlotte in her arms as she looked down at the newly plotted graves in front of her, the funeral of Mary Jacqueline Watson and John Hamish Watson had been lovely, it was a small and intimate ceremony and Molly wouldn't have wanted it any other way. She had spotted Sherlock among the crowd but once Mycroft arrived to pay his respect he left with the older Holmes, Molly didn't bother to ask where he was going, she couldn't care less.

"Molly."

She turned around to see Lestrade walking towards her; a soft smile graced her features before walking up to meet him half way.

"I received a phone call from a man called Steven Fitzgerald he works with Child Protective Services and he wanted to meet with you and Sherlock to discuss Charlotte's living arrangements. I didn't know what to tell him so I gave him the address to Sherlock's flat he said he'd pop up around noon."

Molly let out a huff of air before speaking, "Thank you... I'll let Sherlock know."

Lestrade pulled her into an awkward hug before letting go and clearing his throat, "I'll see you around."

After Lestrade had gone, Mrs. Hudson came to her and placed her hand softly on her shoulder, "I think we should go dearie... You look tired and Charlie will be waking up and wanting some food. Come."

The older woman led Molly to an awaiting cab and the two made their way to Baker Street.

xXx

The two women spotted a thin lanky man waiting impatiently outside of the flat, he looked to be in his forties with greying dark hair, he was furiously scribbling things down in a folder, as the women exited the cab he looked up and tilted his head.

"Are you Molly Hooper?" he said in a Scottish accent.

"Oh..er, yes. Yes I am you must be Steven?"

"Yes, I see they told you about me..." He looked them over a few times and blinked in realization, "Oh... I'm sorry... Did you just—"

"Get back from a funeral. Yes, we did."

"My apologies... I can come back if you'd like."

Molly handed Charlie over to Mrs. Hudson and shook her head, "No, it's fine... You're already here we might as well."

He motioned him to follow her and Mrs. Hudson inside; once they entered he looked around his surroundings.

"This is Mr. Holmes' residence am I correct?"

Molly nodded, "He's not here but we can go into Mrs. Hudson's flat, I'm sure she won't mind." she turned to look at the older woman, "Right?"

Mrs. Hudson smiled, "Of course! Come in, I'll put Charlie down and I'll make us all a warm cuppa."

"Actually, I wanted to speak with both you, do you know when he's due?"

Both Molly and Mrs. Hudson looked at each other, suddenly the door opened and Sherlock entered he gave them all a strange look before his eyes settled on Steven, "You must be Steven Fitzgerald. The names Sherlock Holmes, now are we all having a meeting down here?"

Steven shook his head, "No, we were actually waiting on you."

Without another word Sherlock headed up the stairs into his flat, Steven gave Molly a strange look only for it to be returned with a shrug she then walked up the stairs towards 221b.

* * *

"Ah, thank you Miss Hooper." said Steven as she handed him a cup of tea.

Molly plopped down on the couch next to him and watching take a small sip before setting it down, Sherlock sat in his chair plucking at his violin. Steven cleared his throat and took out a file,

"So I wanted to talk to you about Charlotte Elizabeth Watson, her parents recently lost their liv**—**"

"Yes, get on with it." said Sherlock impatiently.

Molly gave the man an apologetic look and motioned him to continue.

"Yes, well... You two were put down as Charlotte's guardians and now it's time to decided what we're going to do, I have to determine if you two will be a good fit to take care of a child, so I will ask you some questions... if that's alright?"

Molly nodded, "Of course."

Steven opened the file and took out a pen, "How long have you and been together?"

A blush crept on her face and she quickly cleared her throat, "Sherlock and I aren't... together."

"Oh! I'm sorry... I didn't.." he began

"It's fine..." she assured.

"It's just that the parents usually put couples as guardians." he wrote something on the file before continuing, "May I ask what you two do for a living?"

Molly shifted in her seat and said, "I'm a Pathologist."

Mr. Fitzgerald nodded and wrote it down, "You work with dead people?" he said casually without waiting for an answer he looked over at Sherlock.

"I'm a consulting detective. The only one in the world." he said rather proudly.

"I've never heard a consulting detective." replied Steven.

"That's because I invented the job."

Steven stared at Sherlock for a few seconds, "I'll just put unemployed."

Molly bit back the urge to laugh as she stared at Sherlock's reaction, he set his violin down and crossed his arms over his chest and scowled lightly.

"Will Charlotte be staying with you, Miss Hooper?"

"No, she will stay at Baker Street." said Sherlock suddenly.

Molly frowned and turned to look at him, "You can't just decide that! You aren't the only one looking after her now."

Sherlock rolled his eyes, "She will be more comfortable here."

"What makes you say that? You can't even take care of yourself what makes you think you can take care of her?"

Molly winced lightly at her words she regretted them as soon as they came out, "I'm...sorry." she muttered, "I just... She's also my responsibility."

Sherlock looked her over and said, "Molly you're welcome to move in, but the child is staying here." he said firmly.

"You want me to move in?" she said in surprise.

"You are also Charlotte's guardian and she seems to... like you. You won't be far from Bart's, it's cheaper than the place you're at right now and Mrs. Hudson could watch her when we're busy, it's the only logical solution." he said in a matter of fact tone.

Molly nodded to herself before locking eyes with Sherlock, "You're right... I'll give a try."

Sherlock smirked and grabbed his violin from where he had set it down, he began plucking at the strings before Steven cleared his throat causing the two looked at him, "If that's all settled, I'll set you two another appointment for next week."

"Why?" replied Sherlock boredly.

Steven stood up and fixed his suit he then made a face as he scanned the flat, stopping at the skull on the mantel, "Clearly you two need to work out a living arrangement and the appointment is just to check on how Charlotte is settling in, it's nothing but a checkup. After next week you won't get another one for six months."

Molly stood up and shook his hand, "Thank you so much, Mr. Fitzgerald. I'll walk you out."

Molly watched Sherlock pick up his bow and stand up, as the two exited 221b the violin began to play a sad tune, Steven turned to look up at Molly and Molly returned his look with a smile, after a few seconds Molly led the man out of the building and made her way to Mrs. Hudson's flat, she couldn't believe she agreed to move in with Sherlock she just hoped she knew what she was getting herself into.


	3. Chapter 3

_Hello readers! I'm so please you're all liking the story! This seems to be the only story I keep thinking about, so I'm sorry for those who are reading my other two stories I promise I'll update them soon! This chapter made me a little sad... I've never truly lost someone close in my life, so I probably didn't capture Molly's sadness perfectly. I thought about how I would feel losing my best friend as an inspiration...is that horrible? Eventually we'll talk about how Sherlock's feeling... He sort of opens up to Molly a little in this chapter! I have so many ideas for this story and I hope I'm able to get them out for your enjoyment. Fun fact: Charlie's birthday is on December 7th! _

* * *

Molly clutched the keys to Mary and John's flat so tightly in her hand she was sure she would draw blood if she didn't stop, the cab pulled up to the familiar building and Molly's heart began to beat rapidly. The last time Molly had visited this place it was on a happier note. She had come over for tea with Mary, and the two had discussed Charlotte's first birthday and even planned something out... and now... Molly let out a sigh and paid the cabbie before getting out; she took a deep breath before nodding to herself.

"You can do this, Molly. You can do this..." she assured herself.

With one final word of encouragement the pathologist trotted up the steps and quickly entered the building. Although she didn't want to come (especially not by herself) she knew she'd have to do it eventually, Charlie's stuff was here after all and she couldn't keep on wearing the clothes Mrs. Hudson had for her (they were starting to shrink with all the washes). Molly opened the door to the flat and poked her head in, she half expected to see John sitting with Charlie in his lap and Mary boiling some water for tea, but instead she was greeted by a cold empty room. Molly licked her lips nervously as she entered the flat and took her coat and scarf off, Harry had informed her that she and Clara would be stopping by in a few days to pack everything up, so Molly needed to pack up Charlie's stuff and take it over to Baker Street, just then her phone pinged in her pocket.

_Are you at their flat? SH_

Molly pursed her lips at the text, Sherlock had been no help whatsoever and yes, it was starting to pissing her off. She had begun moving some of her things into his flat (which he wasn't helping with at all) and apart from that she was taking care of Charlie and working. Molly rubbed her temple feeling a headache coming on and she quickly pressed the reply button.

_Yes I am it would be nice if you could come help me pack Charlie's clothes xM_

Mrs. Hudson had told her that Sherlock was just trying to cope with the loss of his best friend, and Molly respected that, but she had lost her best friend too. It wasn't fair! She didn't find it fair at all; she didn't know how long she would last. Mary had been like a sister to her, and now she was gone who would she call late at night just to talk? Who would she hang out with and watch crap telly and drink wine? It felt like she had lost a part of her and now she felt empty, all she wanted to do is scream at the top of her lungs and lock herself in her room for a week. But she couldn't... she was responsible for another person now, and she had to be strong for Charlie she was her main priority now, with or without Sherlock. Speaking of Sherlock she heard her phone ping and she quickly opened her new message.

_Fine... I'm bringing Charlotte with me. SH_

The brunette made a face, he was with Charlie? She clearly remembered leaving her with Mrs. Hudson, just then her phone pinged again,

_Mrs. Hudson went out in case you were wondering. I agreed to watch her; we'll be there in 20. SH_

He agreed to watch her... He _agreed _to watch her...

"What an arse!" she gasped in disbelief, he was acting like he was a bloody babysitter! This man was so... infuriating!

Molly rolled her eyes before stuffing her phone in her pocket and headed towards Charlotte's bedroom to pack.

* * *

Molly managed to find where Mary had hidden all their suit cases; she splayed them all out on the floor and began neatly folding all of Charlotte's clothes. After a while she heard the front door open and Charlie's familiar squeals and coos from the living room, she stood up and headed towards the source of the noise. A giggle escaped her mouth at what she saw before her, Sherlock with a baby on one arm , a carrier clutched in his hand, and a diaper bag was slung over his shoulder and he was looking at her with relief (and a little fear?) in his eyes. Molly bursts into fits of giggles and Sherlock quickly scowled at her.

"She spit on me." he muttered angrily.

"That's what babies do." she replied.

Sherlock set the carrier on the floor and plopped the diaper bag on the couch before holding Charlie up with both his hands, Molly had to admit Sherlock did look good with a baby in his arms… But now that she thought of it she had never actually seen Sherlock hold Charlie… At least not around her.

"Sherlock..." she began.

"Have you ever even held Charlie? I don't remember ever seeing you do it."

Sherlock set Charlie on the floor; where the tiny girl began crawling around her familiar surroundings eventually finding one of her toys.

"I've held her before." he scoffed, "When she was born..."

"Charlie's ten months old..." she reminded him.

"Well I held her when I brought her over here didn't I?"

Molly nodded and smirked her eyes settled on the white stain on Sherlock's shoulder, "How do you clean this stuff off?" he asked her.

"With water and a little soap, here let me do it."

Molly walked over to the kitchen and grabbed a paper towel, she watched Sherlock shrug off his coat and Molly couldn't help but stare his lean muscles flexed lightly as he moved his arms, not to mention his chest... Why did he insist on wearing shirts a size to small? Molly shook her head lightly and closed her mouth; Sherlock set his coat on the counter and went to check on Charlie.

"Charlotte." he simply said.

The tiny blonde girl looked up at the sound of his voice and laughed, Molly noticed Sherlock smirk and sit on the floor with her he waved the toy she was playing with in front of her face and watched her amused face as she tried to grab it. It was nice seeing Sherlock interacting with her, he seemed to be enjoying it as much as the tiny blonde was. Molly cleaned up Sherlock's coat and set it over the chair to dry; she made her way towards the living room and sat on the couch next to Sherlock.

"Sherlock, we need to talk."

"About?" he said without looking away from Charlie.

"About what we're going to do."

Sherlock handed Charlie the toy and turned to fully face her, "We've already decided what we're going to do."

Molly furrowed her brow lightly, "Well you must have imagined the conversation because I don't remember ever discussing anything."

"You agreed to move in." he stated.

"Yes, but that's not what I'm talking about."

"Then what _are _you talking about?"

The room went silent except for a few squeals from Charlotte. Molly let out a sigh and ran her fingers through her hair, Sherlock kept his gaze on her as he waited for her to speak.

"I can't take care of her on my own." she began.

"You're not..."

"Mrs. Hudson isn't responsible for her, Sherlock." she said sternly.

Sherlock opened his mouth to say something, but quickly closed it Molly took this as an opportunity to continue,

"You can't just dump Charlie with Mrs. Hudson when I'm not there." She told him.

Sherlock frowned, "I'm not _dumping _her with Mrs. Hudson..." he sounded almost... hurt.

Charlie crawled up to them and stood up using the table for support, the two watched her for a moment before she fell softly on her bum, and Molly finally let out a sigh.

"I'm sorry... that came out harsh... I just mean I-I can't do this by myself, Sherlock. You have to help me out, I know this is new for you, but it's new for me too." she said. Molly's eyes never left his face, "I know you're sad." she whispered.

Sherlock watched her but Molly continued, "I know you're sad because I'm sad too."

Sherlock's face soften and he slowly nodded, "You're right..." he began, "I apologize, I haven't been taking your feelings into consideration. I've been selfish and unreasonable. We're both responsible for Charlotte and I haven't been much help. I will try to be more… helpful."

"You will?" she said in surprise.

Sherlock nodded and turned to look at Charlotte, "She's the daughter of my best friend and I knew what I was getting into when I signed that paper, but… I'm scared." he suddenly chuckled and looked at Molly, "Look at me… I'm scared, of a child. How pathetic is that?"

Molly smiled softly and placed her hand on his shoulder, "It's not pathetic… I'm scared too, if that makes you feel any better." She heard him scoff, but she continued, "But don't worry, I'm sure we'll be able to manage this... How hard could it be to take care of a baby?"


	4. Chapter 4

_Hello readers! I should really be doing homework but instead, I decided to write this! This is funner, hehe I'm hoping to have more Sherlock/Charlie bonding moments within the upcoming chapters because, come on! A baby and Sherlock Holmes together? That's just the cutest thing in the world! He's so awkward with her as you'll see in this chapter I feel so bad for Molly and Charlie, haha. I'm a little shocked at how much attention this story is getting I wasn't expecting it at all! Thank you to all of you who have followed, favorited, and reviewed the story so far, I'm truly flattered._

* * *

Sherlock held the violin close to him he played a soft melody, his bow graciously glided around across the strings. Lately his thoughts were everywhere (more than usual) and it had become harder to keep his mind at ease, he hoped playing his violin would help him but he was wrong. His mind was everywhere and he blamed it on the current events happening in his life. He heard a knock on the door causing him to lose his train of thought; Sherlock abruptly stopped playing and let out a sigh.

"Yoo-hoo, Sherlock." said Mrs. Hudson in her usual chipper tone.

The consulting detective turned to look at the older woman and stared at the smiling child in her arms, she always seemed to be so happy (How annoying). Mrs. Hudson set Charlie on the floor where the toddler began to crawl to the pile of toys Molly had set out for her the night before; it had been three days since they had moved all of Charlie's and Molly's things to the flat. The flat itself was a mess, unpacked boxes and scattered clothing everywhere.

"Oh, Sherlock... You should really make an effort to clean; I'm not your housekeeper you know."

"No, of course you're not." replied Sherlock.

She entered the flat and picked up a few pieces of clothing from the floor, and let out a frightened squeak as Molly's cat, Toby, darted out from his hiding place Charlotte let out a squeal of amusement which caused Sherlock to smirk, Mrs. Hudson let out a sigh and turned to look at him.

"I'm going for tea at Mrs. Turner's I'm leaving Charlie here. Don't let her get into anything... dangerous." and with that she walked out of the flat, "And don't perform any experiments on her either!" she said from down the stairs

Sherlock set his violin on the couch and walked over to Charlie, he eyed her quizzically and crouched in front of her, "Look at you...so innocent. A mind just waiting to be mended." he poked her lightly causing her to stop playing with her toys and stare at him, after a few seconds she seemed to forget and went back to her toys, "So easily distracted." he muttered to himself.

Sherlock sat in his chair, his fingers steepled as he observed Charlie from a distance; she seemed entertained enough but occasionally attempted to get up, but her wobbily legs failing her miserably. Sherlock was glad for her lack of motor skills, this made it easier for him to keep track of her, at least until Molly got home. He had suggested to the pathologist to take a few days off work, saying that Stamford would understand, but she refused. Honestly, he didn't understand why no one ever listened to him it made everyone seem so... dull. His thoughts were broken by a strange sound coming from Charlie, he observed her redden face that caused him to get up he began making his way towards her but stopped when the smell hit him.

"Oh no." he said with a hint of panic, he took out his phone and started a new text.

* * *

Molly was glad she decided to continue working; with all the chaos that was going on back in Baker Street she was enjoying the familiarity of her job. The pathologist began stitching up the body of sixty-four year old Jared Hamilton (Heart attack) when she felt her phone buzz in her pocket, she let out a sigh and quickly finish stitching up the body before removing her gloves and checking her phone,

_I need you. SH_

Molly pursed her lips and pressed the reply button.

_I'm a little busy at the moment. xM_

Her phone buzzed immediately,

_It's important! It's about Charlotte. SH_

_Whatever it is, I'm sure you can handle it on your own. xM_

With that she stuffed her pocket in her lab coat and covered up the body to put away, once she was done with that she felt her phone buzzing again. With another sigh she took out her phone and saw his name blinking on the screen, Molly's brows knitted together, what was so damn important that he needed to call her? Molly answered the phone and placed it against her ear,

"Come home, now." said Sherlock sternly.

Before Molly could utter a word he hung up leaving Molly with a confused look, the pathologist let out a huff of air and glanced up at the clock on the wall. It was almost her lunch break and Baker Street wasn't far from Bart's she'd go see what he wanted and grab some food at the flat.

xXx

Molly quickly hailed a cab and gave the driver the address, within fifteen minutes the cab pulled up in front of the cab. Molly paid the driver and quickly got out and entered the building, immediately she could hear Charlie's cries echoing throughout the place. Molly hurried up the stairs to find a screaming red faced Charlotte on the ground and Sherlock pacing and muttering quickly to himself, he looked up as he spotted Molly and hurried to her side.

"Molly!" he said in relief.

The brunette took off her scarf and coat and set it on the peg and gave him an angry look, "What's going on? Why is she crying and what is that awful smell!?"

Sherlock took a hold of her arm and led her towards the crying baby, Molly instinctively picked her up and sniffed her she quickly crinkled her nose in disgust and looked up to glare at Sherlock.

"She needs a nappy change." he stated.

"Obviously." she replied in a mocked tone, "Why didn't you change her?"

Sherlock stood quietly and Molly took the hint, "You... You don't know how to change a nappy?" she questioned.

"I uh... don't."

Molly let out a sigh and turned her attention to Charlie and kissed her head she comforted her a little before grabbing her blanket and setting it on the floor.

"Could you grab me a nappy and the wet wipes?" she asked as she sat the infant on the floor.

Sherlock nodded quickly and hurried up the stairs to Molly and Charlie's bedroom. A few seconds he returned with the items and turned to give Charlie some privacy. As she cleaned Charlie she would catch Sherlock staring at how she was doing it, obviously trying to learn. Molly finally stopped and looked up at him,

"Here, you should try it. It's easy and if you learn...Then you can do it when I'm not home."

Molly took a hold of his hand and pulled him to the floor beside her; Sherlock looked down at the half-naked baby kicking her legs happily and swallowed a nervous lump in his throat. He took the nappy that Molly handed him and nervously fumbled with it,

"Ok, just unfold it and put the wider part in her bum. Lift her bum like this."

She took a hold of Charlie's kicking legs and pulled her up so her bum was hovering a little off the floor, Sherlock's hands replaced Molly's and he softly held the baby in position,

"Now you just set the nappy under her and let her go."

Sherlock did as he was told and pulled the nappy to cover the rest of the infant, he then took a hold of the elastic folds and fastened the tabs on the diaper and gave a triumphant smile, a little proud of how quickly he learned.

"See? That wasn't hard you could have done it on your own."

"Yes well..." he cleared his throat and took Charlie in his arms; "I should go change her clothes." he stood up and walked over to one of the suitcases containing her clothes.

"You know... You could unpack some of this stuff while I'm at work." Molly said as she grabbed the dirty nappy and went to throw it away.

"Yes, but I would prefer if you were here to assist me. I don't necessarily know where you want me to put all these things."

Molly walked over to the refrigerator and pursed her lips at the lack of food, "It wouldn't kill you to go to the grocers..." she told him, "Has Charlie eaten?"

"I think Mrs. Hudson fed her before she left."

"How long ago was that?"

"I don't know... Two hours."

Molly closed the refrigerator and went to get her and Charlie's coat, "Get your coat, Sherlock. We're going out to get lunch."

"I'm not hungry."

"Well I am, and you should get some food in Charlie. You'll have to put her to sleep soon."

"Oh alright, you know this would be so much easier if you stayed here instead of going to work."

"Oh not this again... Just get your coat, Sherlock." she sighed.

Sherlock handed Charlie over to her while he went to fetch his coat and scarf, once the three were ready Molly grabbed her bag and Charlie's diaper bag and the three made their way to a small restaurant near her work.

* * *

Molly walked into the lab to find Stamford reading some of her paper work, she was hoping to sneak in undetected since she had taken a longer lunch break than usual. He looked up as soon as the doors opened,

"Molly where were you?" he asked curiously.

"I uh... There was an emergency..." she stammered.

"Sherlock?"

"Sherlock." she confirmed.

She explained to him what had happened causing him to laugh out loud, Molly smiled politely until he stopped,

"I think you should take a few days off."

"What? Why?"

Stamford shifted uncomfortably on his feet, "I think it would be good for you...So you can settle living with Sherlock and taking care of how's she doing by the way? How's Sherlock doing?"

Molly let out a sigh, "Charlie is doing well she seems to be adjusting pretty. Sherlock on the other hand is completely out of his element...as you can tell, but he just needs to get used to everything."

Stamford nodded and pushed his glasses up, "Poor bloke. I feel bad for him I don't think he ever imagined himself in this situation."

"Tell me about it..." she muttered, "I think taking a few days off will help so I will take you on that offer."

"Yeah? Good."

Molly nodded, maybe taking a few days off would help her and Sherlock get adjusted she would clean out the flat and organize everything, they had a visit from Steven Fitzgerald in a few days and she wouldn't want him seeing a destroyed flat,

"If you want you can go home, I have everything under control here."

Molly nodded and smiled warmly at him, "Thank you. I'll see you soon alright?" and with that she was out the door and on her way home.


	5. Chapter 5

_Hello readers! Sorry for such a late update! I swear wasn't doing it on purpose, school got in the way. I promise to start updating regularly, I absolutely love this story so don't think I'm abandoning it. Thanks to all of you who have favorite, followed, and reviewed! All you make me sooo happy! Thanks to those who have PM'd me asking if I was ok, you're all truly wonderful!_

_I hope you enjoy this chapter!_

* * *

"Sherlock? I'm going to the grocers do you need anything?"

Molly wrapped her scarf around her neck and stared at Sherlock laying on the couch, she had lived with him for almost a week and she was still getting used to it. Actually getting used to living with people in general, she had gotten used to living on her own for so long. Her eyes settled on a sleeping Charlie in her play pin, she watched the child's chest rise and fall slowly and a smile crept on her face, Charlie was still so small but she was getting bigger every day! She was even starting to walk without wobbling and full words. Molly only wished her parents were here to see what a bright child she was, a sigh escaped her lips and looked over at Sherlock,

"Sherlock, I'm leaving Charlie here. She's asleep and I don't want to wake her, I'll be back in twenty minutes. Remember that the CPS worker is going to be here soon."

Molly had reminded Sherlock all week about the meeting, but to her demise she forgot food, being busy all week unpacking she wouldn't want to get in trouble simply because there was no food in the fridge, it would look like they weren't feeding themselves or Charlie.

"Sherlock are you listening?" she asked out loud.

"Yes." he replied in a bored tone.

"...Right. So I'll be back in twenty minutes." And with that Molly exited the flat and headed to the nearest store.

* * *

Sherlock sorted through his mind palace, he vaguely remembered hearing Molly talking something about Charlotte? He wasn't too sure, all he said was _yes _and as he predicted it shut her up. Sherlock wrinkled his brow as he heard his mobile ring.

"Molly." he called out, but no response.

Eventually his mobile started up again, Sherlock let out a grunt of frustration and stood up, he reached for his mobile and pressed it against his ear without checking who it was.

"What!?" he growled.

"Sherlock?" replied the voice of DI Lestrade.

"Oh...What is it?"

"There's been a body... We'd really lik—"

"Text me the address."

Without waiting for a reply he hung up the phone and walked over to the peg to retrieve his coat and scarf, as he wrapped his scarf around his neck he noticed Charlotte staring back at him, a huge smile on her face and a frown on his.

"Molly!" he called out, but no response.

He stepped out of the flat and called out for Mrs. Hudson but no reply, damn. Sherlock entered the flat and took out his mobile, his finger hovered over Molly's number but he quickly decided not to call her... She was right after all, he couldn't just dump Charlotte with her when he needed to be somewhere... But this was a case, cases were important. He found Lestrade's number and he stared at the screen intensely before letting out a groan, he couldn't well call off a case, he hadn't had one in days! Finally, he stuffed his mobile in his coat pocket and walked over to Charlotte.

"I can't leave you here; you're far too insufficient to take care of yourself..."

Charlotte looked up at the tall consulting detective and smiled widely; Sherlock smirked and bent down to grab her.

* * *

"No! No, no! This is where I draw the line, Sherlock." called Detective Lestrade as he made his way towards Sherlock and the infant.

"Sherlock, why do you have Charlie? A crime scene isn't a safe place for a child!"

"I didn't have anyone to watch her now shut up and take me to the body." he said with a hint or frustration.

"What about Molly?"

"I called her name, but she didn't respond. Here, she might need a changing."

He handed Lestrade the infant and thrusted the nappy bag at him which he took, Sherlock strode into the building leaving Lestrade and Charlie behind, Lestrade let out a sigh.

"Did the freak really bring a baby to crime scene?" commented Donovan beside him.

Lestrade let out another sigh and handed Charlie over to Donovan, "Watch her." he mumbled before entering the building.

"What am I am I suppose to do with her!?" she called out, but got no response, "Bloody gits." she mumbled under her breath.

xXx

Sherlock was feeling good! Really good! The case ended up being easier than he thought but it was actually a bit really boring, hardly a four but he was desperate for a case. The consulting detective held onto a sleeping Charlotte as he made his way up the stairs to 221b, he entered the flat to find Molly and Steven Fitzgerald sitting on the couch drinking tea. Molly looked up once she heard them enter, Sherlock spotted the look of relief on her face and wondered where she thought he and Charlotte had disappeared to, he reminded himself to ask her once Steven had left.

"Sherlock!" she squeaked, clearly nervous, "Where were you?"

Sherlock noticed the man scribbling furiously at their file and let out a sigh, "I took Charlotte to the park." he lied, "I read children enjoy... fresh air."

Molly nodded, clearly not believing him, "I'll go put Charlotte in her crib." before any of them could reply he headed up the stairs.

* * *

Molly poured herself and Mr. Fitzgerald more tea, she poured Sherlock a cup while the two waiting for him.

"How are you and Charlotte adjusting?" he asked curiously.

"It was a little difficult at first. Sherlock isn't... Well, he's different. But, I think we're adjusting, especially Charlotte she seems to like it here." she said with a smile.

Mr. Fitzgerald nodded and took a sip of his tea, "And what about Mr. Holmes?"

"Oh, I think I'm adjusting quite well. Thank you for asking."

Both Molly and Steven looked up, Molly followed Sherlock with his eyes and he went to sit on a chair across from them, as soon as he sat down Toby jumped on his lap and curled up.

"Right." muttered Mr. Fitzgerald, "That's good to hear."

The three talked for the next hour, mostly about things Charlotte would need, doctor checkup, and general socialization with other children, everything seemed to be going well and Mr. Fitzgerald seemed pleased with the process.

"There's also another thing." he said as he began packing up his file.

"What's that?" she asked curiously.

"I suggest, for Charlotte's sake that you two don't enter a relationship."

Molly blushed and looked over at Sherlock, "W-What makes you think we... I mean.."

Mr. Fitzgerald looked over at her before shrugging, "Living in such close proximity and caring for a child can stir up... feelings. If you two were to enter a relationship and something were to go bad, it wouldn't be good for Charlotte." in informed them.

"I can assure you that won't happen." intervened Sherlock, "I'm married to my work, and by the look of Molly's past lovers I'm sure she isn't looking for a relationship. Isn't that right, Molly?"

The red face pathologist looked at them and nodded, "Right." she squeaked.

After she said goodbye to the man she made her way back to the flat where Sherlock was getting ready to play the violin.

"Where were you?" she asked him.

"I told you, I took Charlotte to the park." he said without looking up at her, he began playing the violin and Molly let out a sigh,

"I know you're lying." she said.

Sherlock stopped playing and turned to look at her, finally he scowled, "I had a case!"

"You took Charlie on a case?" she whispered.

"...And you weren't here! I didn't want to call you because you said I couldn't keep doing that." continued Sherlock clearly not listening to her,

"You took an infant to a crime scene..." she continued.

"What was I supposed to do!?"

"Oh! I don't know!" roared Molly suddenly, "Maybe NOT GO ON A BLOODY CASE!"

"IT'S NOT THAT SIMPLE, MOLLY!" He yelled at the same volume, "THEY NEED ME! WHO'S GOING TO SOLVE IT HUH!? ANDERSON!? HE'S SO STUPID HE'D PROBABLY THINK HE'S THE MURDER!"

"CHARLOTTE NEEDS YOU TOO!" she yelled back.

"HASN'T ANYONE THOUGHT ABOUT WHAT _I _NEED!" he said suddenly.

Molly closed her mouth and started at Sherlock, he had a look of surprise on his face clearly trying to process what had come out of his mouth, Molly walked towards him,

"Sherlock..." she began, but soon the two heard Charlotte cry causing Molly to let out a sigh, "I should..."

"Yeah." he said hoarsely.

Molly gave him one last look before heading up the stairs to tend to Charlotte, the tiny girl looked up at Molly with tear-stained eyes,

"Aw, did we frighten you?" she cooed, the tiny girl lifted her arms up and Molly took a hold of her, "Let's go get some food in you." she said as she placed a light kiss on her cheek.

* * *

After feeding Charlotte, Molly prepared a bath for the young girl, it was late and Charlie was having trouble getting to bed. Sherlock went into his room and remained there until Molly and Charlotte had settled on the couch reading a book.

"When dawn broke, they started to wander about the forest, seeking a path, but all hope soon faded. They were well and truly lost." read Molly out loud, Charlotte was fixated on the pictures in the book and Molly continued,

"On they walked and walked, till suddenly they came upon a strange cottage, a cottage made of sweets!" she turned the page to reveal a cottage made of candy and Charlotte's eyes widened, causing Molly to smirk.

"The two ate and ate until their bellies were full, 'Let's stay here!' declared Hansel."

Molly stopped reading when she heard the sound of Sherlock's bedroom door open; she spotted him looking at them,

"Sherlo—" she began.

"Oh don't let me being here interrupt your reading." he walked over to his chair and motioned her to continue. Molly readjusted herself into a more comfortable position and nodded, she continued reading until Charlie fell asleep, the young girl's face pressed against the crook of her neck. Molly listened to the young girl's soft breathing before looking over at Sherlock.

"Sherlock..." she began.

"Don't." he interrupted.

"You don't even know what I was going to say!" she protested.

"You were going to apologize for what happened earlier." he hesitated before continuing, "I should be the one to apologize... I shouldn't have taken Charlotte with me. I should have... stayed here until you came home."

Molly smiled softly at him, "That's not what I was going to say...But, yes, don't take Charlie on a case anymore, I'm sure Greg will understand if you're a little late."

Sherlock let out a low groan and ran his hands through his hair, "Fine..." he muttered, "What were you going to say?" he finally asked.

Molly set the book on the table and sat up, holding on to Charlotte and rubbing her back lightly, "Earlier, you said... That no one's thought about what you need... What do _you_ need, Sherlock?" she asked curiously, "You know I'm here if you need to talk."

Sherlock stared at Charlotte before settling his eyes on the pathologist, "You two should get some sleep."

Molly let out a breath and nodded she got up taking the small girl with her, "... Right. Well good night, Sherlock."

Instead of replying he grabbed his violin and began playing a soft melody.


	6. Chapter 6

_Hello readers! So here we are chapter six! By far one of my favorites because so much fluff! Sherlock questions his feelings for Molly! krjsdjdfgk! Exciting stuff! Oh a little announcement before I carry on, I edited my previous chapter, by that I mean I cleaned it up a bit, I re-read it and some parts didn't make sense (especially towards the end) that'll teach me to write and post a chapter in the middle of the night without reading it over. _

_I hope you enjoy this chapter! More fluff on the way! I promise! Feel free to review, I love hearing from you! Oh! Also feel free to leave suggestions on what I should do! What you want to see Molly and Sherlock doing in the future (not that! get your mind out of the gutter!) I mean like umm, some silly scenario that has to do with Charlie. _

_Give me suggestions! I might put them in the story!_

* * *

A month passed since their incident occurred and everything was going pretty well, Molly decided to use her Holiday time to spend more time with Charlotte allowing Sherlock to take cases without having to worry about finding someone to look after the infant. Sherlock sat in his make shift lab in the kitchen, while Molly and Charlotte played on the floor. The consulting detective looked up from his microscope and looked over at the girls on the floor; a smile crept on his face as he watched Molly interacting with Charlotte. Sherlock had to admit that motherhood looked well on Molly, despite the first few hellish weeks of adjusting to everything she looked happier.

He suddenly felt a twinge of guilt, they had all gone through so much during the last month all three of them had lost the people they loved he couldn't believe how easily they were adjusting without them, and that made him feel worse. A few months ago he would have never thought he'd have Molly living at Baker Street, let alone with a child. A child that belonged to his dead best friend and now saw them as her guardians... her parents... Were they her parents? Of course not... Would they call themselves her parents when the time came? It wasn't like they wouldn't tell her about John and Mary, about the wonderful people they were, but that caused him to wonder if she would see them as her parents so many questions had arisen in his ever running mind. Deep in thought he was unaware of Molly looking at him,

"Sherlock, is everything alright?"

His train of thought was broken and his face quickly fell back to his familiar scowl, he focused on his pathologist (his?) on the floor, "Everything's fine!" he said a little too quickly.

He stood up and went to sit on his chair in front of them, Charlotte gave him a silly grin, stood up and wobbled over to him before clinging on to his trousers for support, she then attempted to climb up to sit on his lab, Sherlock lifted the tiny girl up and sat her down watching her make little squeals of delight.

"Are you sure? You seem... distracted." Continued Molly.

Sherlock picked up one of Charlotte's toys and handed it to the small girl before looking over at Molly, "When am I ever distracted?" he said coolly.

Molly shrugged and got up, "I was just asking..." she muttered, "I'm going to start dinner do you mind cleaning up your mess on the table?"

Molly walked over to the kitchen, since moving here Molly had made sure everything was always in its place something about "Not wanting Charlie to get into anything _dangerous_" as if her would ever keep anything dangerous in the flat... Molly made sure to keep him and Charlie in a schedule, he found himself eating regularly and even napping with Charlotte occasionally... When had he become so..._ domestic_? A part of him seemed to enjoy this new domestic life and he found himself wanting to keep Molly happy, why? That was a question not even he could answer, Sherlock stood up with Charlie still in his arms, he bounced the baby up and down before setting her down on the floor and making his way over to the table to clean up.

"Charlie's birthday is coming up next week." said Molly casually as she put some pasta in the boiling pot of water.

"Yes, I'm aware." he replied without looking up.

He watched Molly from the corner of his eye and looked up when she turn around to look at him, "I was thinking of throwing her a little party."

"Why?"

She bit her lip nervously and shrugged, "It's nice thing to do."

"She's turning one... I hardly think she'll know what's going on." he said in a matter of fact tone.

Molly turned around to stir the sauce she was cooking and let out a huff of air, "I just thought it would be nice, we've all had a stressful few months. It could be good for us, we'll invite everyone! I'll even bake a cake!"

Sherlock walked over to her side and gave her a look, "Is this really what you want?" he asked curiously.

Molly nodded and turned to look at him, "Yes. I think it'll be good for everyone. We need a little happiness after..." She hesitated, "After all the stuff that's happened."

Sherlock let out a huff of air and finally nodded, "Alright, we'll have a party for Charlotte."

Molly let out a squeak of happiness and jumped up wrapping her arms around his neck and pulling him in for a hug, Sherlock immediately stiffened at the contact. Molly suddenly pulled away and looked at him with wide eyes,

"Oh! Sorry..." she muttered.

Sherlock cleared his throat and stepped back, "No it's...fine."

The two stared at each other in silence before Molly made a face; "Right, I'll just finish up the cooking here." she turned around without another word and continued with the cooking. Sherlock stood in the same place and watched her for a moment longer, for some reason he wished the hug hadn't stoppped, in fact, he wanted to wrap his arms around her and press her close and never let go...something was definitely wrong with him. After a few moments Sherlock walked back to the table and continued to clean up.

* * *

They ate in silence, but Molly could feel Sherlock's eyes on her while she fed Charlie and it made her feel self-conscious. Sherlock always had a way of making her feel small and vulnerable, she hoped that after moving in with him all those feelings would go away and they did until recently. She pretended she didn't notice his stares mostly for his sake since she knew he would flat-out deny it if she were to confront him. He was nicer to her, but he would occasionally hurt her feelings, but they weren't as bad as before. He also listened to her more, which saved Molly a lot of trouble, she didn't know what to call whatever... whatever this was with Sherlock, and perhaps he was beginning to see her as more than just a pathologist... a friend? Molly truly hoped to become Sherlock's friend, she considered him a friend after all... she never really knew what he thought about her.

After dinner Molly cleaned up the kitchen while Sherlock went to bathe Charlie, once she was done she exited the flat and headed downstairs to check on Mrs. Hudson, the poor woman was suffering from the flu for the past two days and she wanted to make sure she was taking her medicine. Molly knocked on the door and was greeted by a cough and a weak "_Come in_" from the older woman. Molly popped her head in and walked to the sitting room where laid with a thick blanket covering her shivering form.

"How are you feeling?" she asked her softly.

The woman responded with a cough and a sniffle, "I'm doing better than yesterday."

The poor woman looked horrible and that made Molly feel horrible, "Have you eaten?"

Mrs. Hudson nodded and pointed at the bin on the floor, "I did, but it didn't settle well in my stomach. This blasted flu is going to be the end of me, please be careful going back upstairs I would hate it if Charlotte or Sherlock got sick..."

Molly nodded and walked over to the kitchen to set the kettle on, she grabbed Mrs. Hudson's medication and grabbed a plate of biscuits before pouring some hot tea and walking over to her.

"Take these and nibble on these biscuits." she set the plate on the table and handed her the pills, "Eating something light won't make your stomach as upset. The pills will make you a little sleepy so take them now and by the time you're done with the tea you'll be nice and tired."

Mrs. Hudson managed a kind smile before taking her medication, "Thank you, Molly." she told her, "You're always so kind, no wonder Sherlock likes you."

Molly didn't know what she meant by "_like" _perhaps she mean it as a friend or... Molly chose to ignore her comment and gave her a kind smile instead.

xXx

After leaving Mrs. Hudson's flat Molly made her way back to the flat to find a freshly bathed Charlie wrapped in a fluffy towel and a soaked Sherlock. Molly giggled at Sherlock's scowl and placed her hands on her hips,

"Did you both take a bath?" she teased.

"Apparently, Charlotte finds it amusing to splash people with water." he glared at the tiny girl and in return Charlie leaned in to press a wet kiss on his cheek, Molly bit her lip to stop her from _aww_ing knowing that if she did it would only put Sherlock in a mood.

"I need to shower." she told him, "I was just downstairs and I can't risk getting sick."

Sherlock nodded, "Fine, in the meantime I'll go change Charlotte into her pajamas."

"Let me get a change of clothing first." She said quickly.

Without another word Molly trotted up the stairs to get a change of clothes and a fresh towel, when she returned to the living room only to notice that Sherlock had changed into his pajamas, he eyed her curiously before walking past her with Charlotte in his arms and heading up the stairs.

xXx

Molly exited the steam filled bathroom and let out a relaxed sigh, a nice warm shower was just what she needed to relax her muscles. The day's events were suddenly catching up with her and Molly was exhausted, the flat was surprisingly quiet, but Molly paid no attention to it. Molly turned the knob on the door and entered the dimly lit room, where she could hear the soft lullaby of Charlie's music box playing on the bedside table, the music box had been a present from John when Charlie was born, the box itself was a piece of art he had brought it back with him when he returned from a case in Germany. Molly opened the door all the way when she didn't spot the young girl in her crib, her heart nearly stopped when she saw a figure on her bed; she quickly relaxed when she realized it was only Sherlock.

Molly smiled at the scene in front of her, Charlie was splayed out on Sherlock chest. Sherlock had a hand on Charlie's back holding her down so she would fall, on the floor a book of bedtime stories laid flopped upside down. They both looked... so at peace, Molly swallowed a lump in her throat and closed the door behind her before walking over to pick up Charlie, slowly so she wouldn't wake up Sherlock and settled the tiny girl in her crib before placing a soft kiss on her soft forehead,

"Goodnight, Charlie." she whispered softly.

Molly walked over to the bed and settled on the other side, hoping she wouldn't disturb Sherlock, there was no point in waking him since he rarely got any sleep. Except for small naps, a full nights rest was rare for Sherlock Holmes, and she would hate to wake him up, especially for something as silly as this. The brunette snuggled underneath the duvet and let out a tired sigh before sleep caught up to her.


	7. Chapter 7

_Hello! I'm so pleased with how fast I've been updating my stories! *pats self in the back* I'm so proud of myself :)_

_I enjoyed all the positive reviews I got from the last chapter, Sherlock being all cute with a baby is just so skdjfhdfksgh! I love it! Thank you for all of you who are sticking around and thank you for telling me how much you're enjoying the story! That makes me very happy!_

* * *

The sound of Charlie chattering in her crib woke Sherlock up from his sleep, the consulting detective let out a sleepy groan and opened his eyes to find himself in Molly's bedroom, how did that happen? Oh right... He quickly took noticed of his sleeping position, his leg was draped lazily over Molly's legs and his arm wrapped around her stomach, Molly was entirely to close his face and Sherlock slowly lifted his limps off her. She was still in deep sleep, probably wouldn't be up for another hour or two, Charlie's cooing caught his attention and the detective turned his head to look at the girl standing in the crib, he quickly stood up and covered Molly with the duvet, there was no point in waking her so he decided to let her get some extra sleep she deserved it. Walking over to the tiny blond she lifted her arms the moment he approached her,

"Let's allow Molly to sleep for a little while longer shall we?"

The girl responded with a squeal and Sherlock smirked, "How about we make her some breakfast?" the two slipped out of the bedroom and headed downstairs.

* * *

Molly let out a groan as her phone rang loudly in the dimly lit room, without opening her eyes she reached over the bed side table and clutched the phone in her hands before placing it against her ear.

"Hello?" she said in a groggy tone.

"Molly, it's Stamford, listen the person who's filling in for you while you're on Holiday is going to be a little late today and you're the only other pathologist who lives near the hospital. I hate to ask you this, but can you come in? Just for a few hours?"

Molly sat up and scratched her head, she looked over at the clock hanging on the wall which read nine in the morning, and Charlie had a doctor's appointment at ten-thirty.

"Uh, I'll call you back."

They said their goodbye's and Molly quickly pulled the duvet off her body, after she slipped on her slippers the pathologist headed downstairs and stopped mid step once she smelled something burning,

"Sherlock?" she called out.

Molly got a throaty grunt in response and Molly walked to the kitchen where she saw Charlotte and Sherlock covered in batter,

"What happened here?" she said as she grabbed a napkin and wiped Charlie's face.

"We were trying to make breakfast." announced Sherlock, "Obviously."

Molly bit back a smile, "We? You mean you and—"

"Charlotte yes. We were trying to do something...nice for you."

He got up from his chair and motioned Molly to sit down, he grabbed a clean bowl and placed it on the table in front of her, he grabbed a box of cereal from the pantry and poured her a good amount before settling a few pieces in another bowl for Charlie, he then poured some milk in for her and thrusted a spoon in her direction.

"Eat." he commanded.

Molly smiled and took the spoon, "Yes, sir." she mocked.

Sherlock sat across from her and watched her eat, "You should go." he announced.

"Go where?" she said as she took another spoonful of cereal.

"To work, I'm aware Charlotte has a doctor's appointment, but not to worry I will take her."

Molly rose her brow and eyed him curiously, "You'll take her?"

"Honestly Molly, you think I'm not capable of taking our infant to the doctor?" he scoffed.

Molly continued to look at him (Did he just say _our infant?_) Molly finally let out a sigh and nodded, "Fine, you take Charlie to the doctor and I'll go to work. I'll only be a few hours."

Molly finished her cereal and placed the bowl in the sink, "You might want to clean yourselves up a little before you go."

She placed a soft kiss on Charlie's head before going up the stairs to call Stamford back.

* * *

Sherlock strapped the baby carrier across his chest while he waited for Molly to finish getting Charlotte dressed, once Molly emerged from her bedroom the two adults stared at each other, Sherlock had gotten so used to seeing a casually dressed Molly that he found it surprising to see her in her work clothes and tight pony tail.

"You're going to try out the baby carrier?" she asked curiously.

"Is that a problem?" He said as he took Charlotte from her grasp and settled her in the carrier.

"No. It's just...I never thought I'd see you with a baby strapped to your chest... Oh! That sounded weird." she muttered.

Sherlock chuckled and grabbed Charlie's knit cap from the table and put it on the infant's head, "There a lot of things I never thought I'd see myself doing." he said coolly.

Molly and Sherlock locked eyes for a moment, she wondered what he meant by that. Sherlock sure had a way of making himself sound cryptic.

"Plus, this is far more sufficient than carrying a stroller around."

Molly could imagine Sherlock strolling around London with Charlie in her carrier, a giggle escaped her lips and Sherlock gave her a look. Finally the three exited the flat, Molly in one cab and Sherlock and Charlotte in their own, both cabs going the opposite direction.

* * *

After signing Charlotte in the two went to sit down in the waiting room with all the other parents and their children. He set the tiny girl on the floor and took out one of her toys from his pocket and handed to her, the tiny girl squealed happily as she was handed the toy and began playing with it,

"How old is she?" said a woman sitting beside him.

Sherlock rose a brow and looked over at the woman, she was in her mid-thirties _unhappy marriage, husband having an affair...no! She's having the affair… _Sherlock's gaze settled on her face and gave her a big fake smile, "She's turning one in a few weeks."

"Oh how lovely! She's a cutie isn't she?" said the woman with enthusiasm.

"...Yes, she's lovely."

"Are you a first time parent?" she asked suddenly, "I can tell." she continued, "I remember when my first son was born, my husband and I were scared to death of him, and eventually things got easier. Then we had Timmy." she nodded her head in the direction of a child playing with one of the puzzles on the table,

"Once you have one, you can't seem to stop." She said happily.

Sherlock nodded and looked down at Charlotte, hoping that the woman would take the hint and shut up, but instead other mothers joined in and began giving him the _do's _and _don'ts _of parenthood.

"So, how do you stop them from splashing you in the tub?" asked Sherlock curiously.

"Toys." said all the woman simultaneously.

"Toys in the tub keeps them distracted, it works wonders especially if your baby is one of those who can't sit still." said one of the younger females.

"And how do I make her get along with the pet?" he asked curiously, he had no clue why he was asking these women for advice, but they seemed to have answers and Sherlock had questions... a lot of them.

"Well what type of pet do you have?" squeaked a woman.

"A cat, Charlotte tends to play a little rough with him, and I don't want them to accidentally hurt each other."

The women _aww'd _and scooted closer to him, "You just have to show her how to properly interact with the cat the more you show her the more she'll learn."

Sherlock nodded as he processed the new information, suddenly a nurse came out holding a clipboard,

"Charlotte Watson?" she called out.

Sherlock scooped up Charlotte from the floor and turned to face the women, "Thank you for the tips ladies, you were all very... informative." he bowed his head before turning on his heel and walking up to the nurse.

* * *

Molly examined the body of Elizabeth Wood, a twenty-three year old woman who committed suicide. Molly's eyes roamed over the woman's bruised wrists and let out a sigh, it was always sad when she got suicide cases because it always made them wondered what types of lives they lived, however hard they were she wondered what drove them to committing suicide.

As Molly stitched up the woman, she heard the door swing open, for some reason she felt as if Sherlock would come striding in any moment demanding to see a body. Perhaps being in this familiar environment brought back old memories, some good (although, who wants to hear about happy memories being made in a morgue?) and bad, Molly winced lightly as she remembered seeing two of her best friends laid out in front of her not only a month ago.

"Hello, you must be Molly Hooper." said a voice behind her.

Molly turned around and smiled brightly at a blonde haired man in front of her, he gave her a dazzling smile, "My name is Daniel White, I'm your fill in while you're on Holiday." he said meekly, "Sorry you had to come in, there was a flood in my house and I had to wait for the clean-up crew to get there."

"Oh no, I hope you didn't lose anything important."

Daniel chuckled and shook his head, "No, all I got from it were two really grumpy cats."

"You have cats?"

"Yes! Pippin and Sam my two rambunctious boys, do you have cats?"

Molly nodded and smiled, "Just one, his name is Toby."

The two chatted for a bit and Molly learned that he had worked at Bart's before moving to America, he had recently moved back to London. Molly checked the time on her phone Sherlock and Charlie were probably on the way home by now. She gave Daniel a kind smile and began unbuttoning her lab coat,

"Well, since you're here that means I can go? Sorry, I don't want to make it seem like I'm trying to get away from you." she said nervously.

Daniel chuckled and shook his head, "No worries, you are on Holiday after all." Molly nodded and turned on her heel.

"Wait... Would it be totally unprofessional if I asked you to have dinner with me?"

Molly turned scarlet red and turned to look at him, "Y-You want to have dinner with m-me?" she squeaked.

Daniel chuckled nervously and ran his fingers through his blonde hair and nodded, "If you want to... I mean if you don't want to—"

"No!" she said quickly.

Daniel's face fell, "No?"

"No! I mean yes!" she stuttered.

"Yes?" he said in a confused tone.

Molly let out a sigh, "I mean yes, I'd love to have dinner with you."

"You will!?"

Molly blushed and nodded, "Great! I'll pick you up at seven?"

Molly almost said yes, but her thoughts immediately went Sherlock, she knew that the second Daniel stepped into the flat he would go in for the kill. Molly would find something wrong with Daniel and she would rather find it out on her own.

"How about I meet you there? Text me the address?"

Daniel nodded and pulled out his phone, after the two exchanged numbers Molly began to walk out of the morgue,

"I'll see you at seven!" she said as she looked over her shoulder.

"It's a date!"


	8. Chapter 8

_Hello readers! Wow! I'm still amazed at all the positive reviews I'm getting on this story! Thank you all so much, you're all making me feel special! This chapter was one of my favorites to write.  
_

_Thank you all for reviewing, following, and favoriting the story! You're all awesome!_

* * *

After Charlotte's doctor appointment, Sherlock and the infant went out to the shops. Sherlock wasn't much for shopping, in fact he hated it, but after Charlotte received a shot he felt she deserved a new toy... perhaps a new dress or two. Sherlock entered the least irritating looking store where he was immediately greeted by a perky blonde, Sherlock turned to the aisles of clothing and ignored the girl causing her to pout and go back to the register.

He played with Charlotte's dangling feet as he browsed the clothes, Charlotte's laughter echoed through the store causing him to chuckle under his breath, he did enjoy making her laugh.

"They say a child's laughter can make even the coldest of men smile." said a voice behind him.

Sherlock let out a sigh and closed his eyes, "Mycroft." He muttered bitterly, "Should I even ask how you found me?"

"I have eyes all over the city; you know how I am dear brother."

"I do try to forget." he muttered in response.

Sherlock turned around to face his older brother and scowled, "What do you want?"

Mycroft eyed him curiously before settling his gaze at the squirming baby on his chest, "I'm surprised how well you're adjusting to parenthood." he told him, "You should bring Charlotte around to meet mummy, and feel free to bring Molly as well, mummy will be pleased to see your little... family."

Sherlock turned around to look at the dresses, "Are we a family?" Without waiting for a response he picked up a random dress and turned around so Mycroft can see, "What do you think?" he said as he pressed it against a giggling Charlotte.

"No."

Without a word Sherlock put it back and began walking, "Well, if not a family then what do you call all..." he waved his hand, "...This."

Sherlock let out a sigh, "I gave my word to care for this child and that's what I'm doing, that's _all _I'm doing."

"Please you can barely take care of yourself." muttered Mycroft, "I'm taking Miss Hooper is doing most of the caring? By the looks of it she's taking good care of you too, looks like you've gain four pounds." he sneered.

Sherlock rolled his eyes and picked up a red dress and hovered it over Charlotte, Mycroft nodded and Sherlock went back to browsing.

"Is this why you're here, Mycroft? To mock me?"

"I just wanted to see how you were getting along, I worry about you _constantly._"

"Well don't." he grumbled.

"Well I don't worry about you as much anymore, not with Miss Hooper around, I haven't had to worry about you blowing up a building simply because you're_ bored_."

Sherlock let out a sigh, "That was _one_ time..."

"...Yes well, do thank her for me will you?"

Sherlock turned around to glare at his brother, but the older Holme's only gave him a smirk before patting Charlotte's head and tuning on his heel, he swung his umbrella over his shoulder and spoke out without turning to look at him,

"You should buy her a purple dress, it's Molly's favorite colour." he said before exiting the shop.

After Mycroft left Sherlock went back to his shopping, he bought Charlotte two dressed (red and purple) and a little doll, after forging Mycroft's name into the receipt he snatched the bags from the woman's grasp and exited the shop soon he hailed a cab and the two headed back to Baker Street.

* * *

Molly was greeted by the sound of Sherlock and Charlotte in the living room, the pathologist set her coat and scarf on the peg and headed over to the pair on the couch,

"Can you say Mol-ly?" said Sherlock and he held the girl in front of him; he locked eyes with Molly for a second before focusing his attention back to Charlie, "How about Sher-lock? Can you say Sher-lock?"

Molly flopped on the couch beside them and giggled, "What on Earth are you two doing?" she said in amusement.

"I'm trying to teach Charlotte how to talk, I can tell she wants to communicate with us, but she just doesn't know how to." he stated.

"Oh? So you're a baby expert now?" she teased.

Sherlock scowled at her, "There's ways of knowing when she wants to communicate for example," he handed Charlotte over to Molly and turned his body to face her, "When she's hungry she'll make a noise."

"A noise?"

"Yes, like she's trying to tell us she's hungry but she just can't find the words."

"...Right."

Sherlock rolled his eyes, "You just don't understand."

"And you do?" she replied.

"I always do." he said proudly.

Molly laughed and leaned against the couch while Sherlock focused his attention back on Charlie.

"Sher-lock." he enunciated, "Come on Charlotte you can do it, Sher-lock."

Molly giggled at Charlotte's face, the poor girl gave Sherlock a confused look, probably wondering what on Earth this man was doing. Molly's eyes roamed the surprisingly clean living room when her eyes settled on a shopping bag,

"You went shopping?" she asked curiously.

Sherlock nodded without looking away from Charlie, "After we went to the doctor, I felt Charlotte deserved a reward for doing such a well job during her appointment." Sherlock cupped Charlie's tiny cheek and smirked, "She didn't even cry when she got her shot, she was very brave." he said in a matter-of-fact voice, "Now Charlotte, say Sher-lock. _Sher-lock."_

Molly suddenly smiled at the pair; she never thought she'd see the day when Sherlock Holmes tried to teach a child how to speak or take them shopping for clothes. He looked so natural interacting with Charlotte as if it was something he'd done all his life, Molly had grown so used to seeing him with his cruel and cold exterior that she found it... pleasing to see this side of him.

"You're staring." he said suddenly, his gaze never leaving Charlotte's.

Molly suddenly blushed and looked away, "Oh, I'm sorry." she muttered.

"You shouldn't constantly apologize." he told her, "Charlotte is going to pick up on that bad habit."

The brunette rolled her eyes, "You rather her turn out like you?"

"That wouldn't be a bad thing, she'd be clever and I could take her on cases with me." he teased, "Can you say mur-der, Charlotte? _Mur-der_."

"Sherlock!" gasped Molly, she swatted his arm playfully causing him to chuckle, "You can't teach Charlie how to say... that!"

"Say what?" he said innocently.

"Murder!"

Charlotte watched them and began giggling, "Mer-dar!" she squeaked "Mer-dar!"

Both Sherlock and Molly looked down at Charlotte and Molly let out a gasp, "Did she?" Molly began

Sherlock nodded, "What did you say, Charlotte?"

"Mer-dar!" she squeaked happily.

Molly let out a groan and slumped her head on the couch, "Oooh, her first word! Her bloody first word! And it's murder! John and Mary would turn in their graves if they knew."

Sherlock chuckled and rubbed Charlotte's head, "Good girl, say it again. Mur-der."

"Mer-dar!"

"Stop that!" said Molly in amusement, "People already think we're weird, now Charlotte's going to be part of the club."

The consulting detective smirked and took Charlotte's small hand in his, "Welcome to the club, Charlotte." he kissed her tiny hand and the girl let out a squeal of happiness.

Before any of them could say anything they heard a knock on the door, "Oh look at the happy family!" said Mrs. Hudson from the door, both Molly and Sherlock turned to the doorway,

"Mrs. Hudson! How are you feeling?" asked Molly curiously.

"Much better, dearie I think it's safe for me to come visit little Charlie." she walked into the flat and walked over to where they sat and extended her arms, "May I?"

Molly nodded and handed the girl over before getting up, "Hi, Charlie! I missed you!" cooed Mrs. Hudson.

"Mer-dar!" said Charlotte happily.

"Oh!" breathed Mrs. Hudson.

Molly felt as if a long lecture was about to ensue, but instead Mrs. Hudson burst into laughter, "That seems like a very appropriate first word doesn't it?"

Sherlock stood up and planted a kiss on Mrs. Hudson's cheek, "See, Mrs. Hudson doesn't find anything wrong with it."

The pathologist rolled her eyes before giggling, "Well since, Mrs. Hudson approves then I suppose it's alright." she began making her way towards her room before Mrs. Hudson spoke out,

"Molly, dear I was wondering if you'd go with me to the grocers I haven't been out of my flat in nearly a week, I have a lot of shopping to do, and you know I can't get anything done with this hip..."

Molly gave Mrs. Hudson and apologetic face, "I can't today... I have a date..."

Both Mrs. Hudson and Sherlock stared at her, "You have a date?" said Sherlock suddenly

Molly blushed but didn't answer; she couldn't quite make out Sherlock's reaction... anger? Hurt? Mrs. Hudson cleared her throat and shifted uncomfortably, "Well, I think it's lovely." she began, "You deserve it." clearly Mrs. Hudson was trying to ease the tension in the room, bless her.

"Who... Who are you going on a date with?" Sherlock said in an abysmal tone.

"His name is Daniel; he's my replacement at the morgue while I'm on Holiday."

Sherlock nodded to himself before scowling, without a word he strode out of the sitting room and headed to his room slamming the door behind him. Molly stared at Sherlock's door and let out a sigh, "I should-"

"Don't worry about him, dearie. Go get ready; I'll take Charlie downstairs with me."

Molly gave the older woman a smile and nodded, she was right, maybe Sherlock was just going through another one of his moods they were so sudden that sometimes she didn't know when they would occur, the pathologist gave his bedroom door one last glance before heading to her room to get ready.

* * *

Sherlock paced around his bedroom, occasional muttering quickly to himself. How dare she go on a date!? What made her think it was okay to accept a dinner invitation from a stranger!? She didn't need anyone, she had him and Charlotte! Sherlock let out a groan and ran his hands through his curls, why was he acting this way? This sudden feeling in the pit of his stomach made him sick, he hated it, but the thought of Molly with someone else was so infuriating. Sherlock felt hurt and betrayed, if John were here he'd say he were... jealous.

"Me? Jealous?" he scoffed at himself, "Why would _I _be jealous?" he spat.

He stayed silent for a bit, he knew why; he knew exactly why he was jealous and he just didn't want to admit it.

"Molly shouldn't even be dating." he muttered to himself, "She has responsibilities now. Plus, based on her past relationships she shouldn't even attempt any dating."

Sherlock knew how pathetic he sounded, and what he decided to do next was even more pathetic, but he didn't care anymore, he was doing it for the sake of law and order; he couldn't risk his Molly getting hurt! Sherlock exited his room and heard the shower running and Molly's soft singing coming from the bathroom, he hurried up to her bedroom and spotted her mobile laying on her bed, he quickly unlocked it (Easy number code, her father's birthday) and scrolled through her texts until he found the ones from Daniel. Sherlock glared at the screen as he memorized the address to the restaurant and set the phone back in its place before hurrying to her room, it was time to call in a favor.

* * *

Molly stared in the mirror feeling a little self-conscious of what she was wearing; a sleek black dress that hugged her curves in all the right places, it was her little black dress and according to Mary, every woman had to have one in their closet. Mary had helped her pick it out about a year ago when she really wanted to impress a guy she was going to go on a date with, turned out he dealt and used drugs, she secretly thanked Sherlock for ruining that one for her. After that Molly put the dress in the back of her closet and never gave it another glance, until now. She wanted this date to go well, but what exactly was she expecting? Was she even looking for a relationship at the moment? Her life was far too busy for a social life let alone a boyfriend and what about Sherlock? _What about him? _She mentally scolded herself, she couldn't keep thinking of him when it came to stuff like this, he always had a way of ruining things for her even when he wasn't around. She was living in this fantasy world where she still believed Sherlock would one day realize he had feelings for her. Well, it was time to stop living in that world and face reality, she deserved to be happy.

"Sod him." she whispered.

Before she could regret what she was wearing, the brunette hurried downstairs, where Sherlock was watching Charlotte sleeping on a bundle of blankets while he plucked lazily at his violin, he looked up from the sleeping girl and rose his brow at Molly while he inspected her.

"You're wearing _that_?"

Molly tugged at her dress self-consciously and bit her lip, "What? Is it bad?"

Sherlock let out a sigh, but remained quiet, the brunette cleared her throat and grabbed her coat and scarf,

"I'll be back soon." she announced, "Don't forget to eat something."

Sherlock remained quiet and watched her go, once she was out of the flat he set his violin aside and walked over to the window where he could see Molly's form out in the street, he watched her get in a cab and didn't look away until the cab was no longer in view.

* * *

The date was going great, Daniel was smart and funny, he also didn't mind when Molly made lame jokes about their profession.

"So…are you enjoying your time off?" he asked as he took a sip of his drink.

Molly shrugged and stabbed a few carrots with her fork before popping them in her mouth, "Well, It's not much of a Holiday." she admitted.

"Oh?"

"Perhaps I should explain."

Molly told him about Charlotte and John and Mary's accident, making sure to leave out a few details (Like about how she lived with a certain Consulting Detective),

"Wow..." he exhaled.

"Sorry... This isn't appropriate first date conversation." she said meekly.

Daniel chuckled softly and placed his hand over hers, "No, it's fine. I think what you're doing is wonderful, that little girl is lucky to have someone like you taking care of her."

Molly blushed lightly, "You don't even know me, how do you know she's so lucky?" she said shyly.

"I don't have to know you to know you're a kind person." he replied.

Molly giggled and focused on her food, "For all you know I'm an evil witch who eats children for lunch."

"Well then you're the cutest witch I've ever met."

"You know many witches?" she said in amusement.

"I wouldn't say _'know'_ more like acquaintances, I only talk to them when I need a potion or something."

The two burst into fits of laughter, but suddenly stopped when an angry looking red-headed woman stomped up to their table,

"What the hell is this!?" screeched the woman.

"Excuse me?" said Daniel in confusion.

"I can't believe you're doing this to me again!" replied the woman in anger, she turned to look at Molly and frowned, "She's not even pretty!"

Molly looked around the restaurant, everyone had stopped what they were doing and were looking at them. Daniel cleared his throat and turned to look at Molly who was giving him a questioning look,

"I... don't know what's going on..." he muttered.

The woman began to cry and slapped Daniel hard across the face, the blonde haired man clutched his cheek in pain and Molly stood up, she knew exactly who was behind this, she didn't know why she thought she'd be able to have a normal date for once.

"Who are you?" stuttered Daniel from his seat.

The woman opened her mouth to say something, but Molly stopped her, "Save it, I know what's happening here, I can't believe he did this." she hissed under her breath.

"I don't know what you're talking about!" screeched the woman, "This is my boyfriend of two years!"

Daniel stood up and frowned, "Molly, you have to believe me. I don't know who this woman is."

Molly glared at the woman, "I believe you, Daniel. Tell me, how much did _he_ pay you?"

The woman eyed her before letting out a sigh, "Fine, you caught me. Listen, I owed the guy a favor he said to come here and cause a scene... Will you tell him I don't owe him shit, I did my part." she rolled her eyes and grabbed Molly's wine from the table before gulping it all down.

Molly was red with anger why the hell couldn't Sherlock give her one day!? One bloody day, that's all she wanted. Finally, she gave Daniel and apologetic look before frowning at the woman, she then grabbed her purse and coat and marched angrily out of the restaurant,

"I'm going to kill him." She muttered angrily.


	9. Chapter 9

_Hello readers! This chapter took longer than I thought... there was so many ways I could go about this, but I hope you enjoy what I decided to go with. Also, I updated my last chapter, turns out I accidentally updated my rough draft so I changed that... I want to say thanks to all of you who comented lat chapter! You're all wonderful! _

* * *

While Molly was on her date, Sherlock made sure to clean a little around the house, he gave Charlotte a bath (It turns out toys really do keep children distracted), and even fed Toby. Sherlock was feeling good, he knew by now Molly's date was being interrupted by Victoria Winters, a woman who he managed to get clear her name after her boyfriend had been brutally murdered (turns out she was too busy having an affair with her acting coach at the time of the murder) he didn't feel bad that he was doing this to Molly... Or maybe he did, he still wasn't sure.

What was he going to accomplish out of this? Well, a single Molly that was for certain but was that what he wanted? Of course it was, he wanted her for himself, plus she wouldn't be happy with that idiot, there was probably something wrong with him anyways. There was always something wrong with the men Molly Hooper fancied, and he was a prime example. Sherlock Holmes was an entirely selfish and cruel man and yet, Molly seemed to be okay with that to a certain extent. So then why did that confuse Sherlock so much? He had noted how his feelings towards the pathologist had changed over the last few weeks, at first he thought his feelings towards her were like the ones he had towards Mrs. Hudson. Molly was kind to him and urged him to do tedious things like eat or sleep, somehow he managed to believe his sentiment was purely platonic, but he was wrong, oh how wrong was he. When she mentioned her date he couldn't believe the anger... the _jealousy _that bubbled up in his veins.

"I'm pathetic." he muttered.

He laid on the couch now waited, he knew Molly would come home upset, her date ruined by a jealous girlfriend, he hoped that would stop her from attempting any more dates. He heard a cab pull up and a door slam, followed by an angry comment from the driver, he couldn't really hear what he said, but he heard Molly apologize. Soon he felt her stomping up the stairs and the door open quickly.

"What the fuck is wrong with you!?" she hissed.

"Ah! Molly, you're home. How was your date?" he said without looking up at her.

Suddenly he felt a shoe hit him on his side causing him to leap up on his feet, he picked up Molly's tiny shoe and scowled.

"Molly, it's rude to throw things."

Molly's cheeks grew red with anger and she marched towards him and snatched her shoe, "It's rude to ruin a date, Sherlock!"

"What on Earth are you talking about?" he said coolly

Molly glared and slipped her shoe back on, "Oh, you know exactly what I'm talking about." she said angrily, "Why don't you tell me the hell your problem is? I've put up with so much of your shit! Why can't you ever just leave me alone? All I wanted was one day! ONE _BLOODY _DAY!"

Sherlock frowned and let out a huff of air, "You shouldn't be dating." he said calmly

"What?"

Sherlock let out another huff of air, "Do I really need to repeat myself? I said _you shouldn't be dating_."

"And why not?"

Sherlock looked down at her, "Need I remind you that your choices in men aren't... the best. What if something happened to you?"

"Why do _you_ care if something happens to me?" she spat.

Sherlock shifted uncomfortably and refused to look her in the face, "C-Charlotte! She would miss you." he said quickly, "Who will help me take care of her?"

Molly let out a sigh and shook her head, "Unbelievable..." she muttered, "You don't come between me and my dates do you understand?"

Sherlock could see how angry she was but that didn't stop him, "If it puts you in danger then I will do what it takes."

"It doesn't concern you!" she snapped, "It's my life!"

"Molly, I..."

"You what? Tell me because I don't understand what's going on with you lately. I can't do this anymore, you either tell me how you feel or..."

"Or what." he challenged.

"Or... I can't live here anymore."

The room became quiet and the two stared at each other, Sherlock didn't want her to leave, the thought of her being away from her made him feel...empty. What was he suppose to say now? He knew she was waiting for him to say something, but he couldn't find the words to express himself. They heard a knock at the door and Molly let out a sigh,

"I'll... go get that." she muttered.

Sherlock watched her exit the flat and heard the downstairs door open; she heard a male's voice followed by Molly's surprised one. It was _him _and he knew that. He felt angry, he wanted to march downstairs, shove whatshisface out into the street and lock the door. Instead, Sherlock walked closer to the door to listen in on their conversation.

"Daniel!" he heard Molly squeak out, clearly surprise to how he found where she lived.

"Hi, Molly... Sorry about earlier."

"How... How did you know where I lived?"

He heard him chuckle and Sherlock rolled his eyes, "I looked at your file back at work... I hope you don't think that's creepy. I just felt so bad about what happened, I swear I don't know who that woman was."

"Yeah, I know."

"You do?"

Molly and Daniel exchanged a few words and even agreed to try another date, Sherlock frowned and that jealousy bubbled in his veins once more. He walked back to his chair once he heard the door close and a few seconds later Molly was at the door way,

"I'll start packing tomorrow." she announced, "I'll... Get in contact with Mr. Fitzgerald in the morning to discuss Charlie's living arrangements."

She waited for him to say something... anything, but he remained silent. Molly let out a sigh and nodded, "Well...Goodnit**—**"

"Wait." he said suddenly.

Sherlock stood up and walked towards her, "I'm...sorry, It was... childish of me to ruin your date."

Molly watched him and carefully urged him to continue, "I...shouldn't be selfish, you should be allowed to do what you want. I promise not to do it again... Don't move out...please"

Molly gave him a soft smile and nodded, "Apology accepted, I'm sorry I threw my shoe at you."

Molly's sudden giggle caused Sherlock chuckle, she pulled him into a hug wrapping her short arms around his waist. Sherlock held his breath, but soon found himself wrapping his arms around her tiny frame and pulling her close. It was nice, feeling the warmth of another person near him. Sherlock wasn't a big hugger, not even as a child, he only received hugs from his grandparents and after they had passed he refused to be touched. But with Molly, he felt himself wanting to be touched wanting to be near her, he hated it. He hated feeling so vulnerable so needy, Molly pulled away and tucked a strand of hair behind her ear, she could see a tint of red in her cheek and she quickly looked down shyly.

"Well..." she said softly, "I'll see you in the morning."

Sherlock cleared his throat, "Yes..."

They stood there for a few seconds before Molly laughed, "Could you let go of me?"

Sherlock hadn't realized that his arms were still wrapped around her tiny waist, he immediately let go of her and placed his hands awkwardly on his side, he then blushed (He was blushing now!? For God's sakes!) and cleared his throat, "Right... Sorry... Good night." without waiting for a reply he hurried into his room and shut it behind him. He felt like shit, he had hurt her and it made him feel like complete and utter shit and he knew what this meant, his feelings for Molly were growing stronger, but what was he supposed to do about them? He blew it and now she was going on another date with _Daniel_, Sherlock let out a groan and flung himself on his bed.

"I hate everything." he muttered into his pillow.


	10. Chapter 10

_Hello! I've been having a horrible case of writer's block lately (thus the lack of updates) I also have a stupid essay I have to write! Ugh. How does one get rid of writer's block?_

_Anyways, I had this chapter half written so I decided to finish it for you all (I'm so nice aren't I?) A lot of you have been PMing and requesting Charlie to call Molly and Sherlock mum and dad, well your wish is my command. Spoilers: It pops up in this chapter for a brief moment, but it doesn't mean it won't be brought up later in the story._

_I want to thank all of you who are reviewing, following, and favoriting this story! It's a little overwhelming how much attention this is getting, I don't want to disappoint anyone, hehe. _

_I hope you all like this chapter! Let me know!_

* * *

Molly watched as Sherlock helped Charlie around the playground, he looked so out of place with all those children around him, but nonetheless, she could see the amusement in his eyes as he watched Charlie wobble up to the slide, it made her feel warm seeing him look at her like that. When John and Mary passed she thought everything that could go bad would. She thought she'd end up taking care of Charlie all by herself, but to her surprise Sherlock was a big help, she would catch him talking to Charlie, reading to her, and even playing games with her. He loved her... Sherlock truly loved Charlie, and that made Molly happy,

"You're husband is very handsome." said a voice beside her.

Molly turned her head to look at an elderly woman sitting next to her, "Oh!" she squeaked, "He's not my..."

The older woman smiled at her and turned to look at Sherlock ignoring what she was trying to say, "He seems to enjoy spending time with your child." she said happily, "It's rare to find that in a man these days, you're very lucky."

Molly blushed and turned to look at the consulting detective and their baby, "You see Charlotte." she heard him say, "When you're at the top of the slide you have a lot of potential energy, which is stored energy, but as you go down the slide all that potential energy becomes kinetic energy, which is energy in motion, it's all quite simple." he said in a matter-of-fact tone.

Charlie laughed in response and Molly shook her head before smirking to herself, she always found it amusing when Sherlock tried to teach Charlie things, but she always had to remind him that Charlie was still a baby and that teaching her things was useless since she would most likely forget, but he insisted and who was she to stop him? If it made them bond, then Sherlock could teach her the periodic table for all she cared, which he already attempted and failed miserably.

Sherlock looked up at her and gave her an impish smile that made her heart flutter, It wasn't a secret that Molly had feelings for Sherlock, but she had to keep them to herself, she couldn't let her feelings get in the way of Charlie's life after all, her main priority was and will always be taking care of Charlotte Watson. Plus, it wasn't like Sherlock liked her...well like that, he probably only saw her as a Pathologist and Charlie's other guardian. The brunette let out a sudden sigh, at least things with Daniel were going great, the two had gone in a couple of more dates since the night their date was so maliciously ruined and she felt good about him, she liked him and he liked her. She felt comfortable enough with him meeting everyone so she invited him to Charlie's birthday party in a couple of days.

Molly watched Sherlock scoop up Charlie and trot over to her, "I think Charlotte has had enough play time." he announced. He looked over to the old woman sitting next to her for a brief second before turning his attention fully on Molly.

"Oh... Alright. We should go then, we have a very busy day ahead of us." she told him.

Sherlock nodded and handed Charlotte over to her as soon as she stood up; he planted a kiss on the girl's forehead and smirked as the tiny girl in her arms began to giggle.

"Aw, you're such a cute family." commented the woman sitting on the bench.

Molly opened her mouth to correct her, but Sherlock spoke up, "Thank you." he said, "And yes, you're granddaughter is trying to scam money from you."

Molly groaned internally and took Sherlock's arm; she turned to give the old woman an apologetic smile and practically dragged Sherlock out of the park.

"Not good?" he commented after a while.

"No, Sherlock." she sighed, "Not good at all..."

The consulting detective gave her a look before shrugging, "So what's on the agenda for today?" he asked her curiously.

"Well first we're going to the party supply store to get decorations and then to the grocer's... Did you bring the**—**"

"I memorized it." he said quickly.

"...list... Right, of course you did." she said with a hint of amusement in her voice.

Sherlock smirked and lifted his arm to hail a cab.

xXx

Molly pushed the trolley through the aisles while Sherlock went off (like he always did) Charlie sat in the trolley playing with a stuffed otter she had somehow managed to get her hands on. The two entered a hat aisle and Molly smiled widely as she spotted a sparkly pink cowboy hat,

"Oh look at this cute little hat, Charlie." cooed Molly.

She put little cowboy hat on Charlie and giggled, "Don't you look cute?"

Charlie let out a squeal of amusement, "Ma-ma!" she squeaked happily.

Molly let out a surprised gasped, "Oh Charlie..." she whispered.

The tiny girl giggled and looked behind Molly and began pointing, "Da-da!"

Molly turned her head to see Sherlock walking towards them with a bunch of decorations in his hands; Molly turned to face the giggling girl and smiled softly she felt guilty... Guilty because Charlie would never get to know her real parents, to experience first-hand what wonderful people they were and a little guilty that she liked being someone's mother... Molly let out a sigh and kissed the top of Charlie's head just as Sherlock put everything in the trolley,

"Sherlock, I don't think we need all that..." she told him.

Sherlock turned to look at her and stared at her curiously, he was looking at her with that face that same face he did when he _deduced_...

"What's wrong?" he said immediately.

Molly shook her head and shrugged, "There's nothing wrong, I just think you picked out to many decorations!"

Sherlock squinted his eyes slightly before looking down at the cart, "They're all necessary to make Charlotte's party enjoyable." he told her.

Molly walked to his side and shook her head, "We don't need all this..." she picked up a packet of fairy cake princess toppers and gave him a strange look,

Sherlock cleared his throat awkwardly and shrugged, "They're...nice."

"We're making a cake remember?"

Sherlock took the pack from her hands and set it aside, "...Right." said Molly, "Let's sort through it and just... get what we agreed on, deal?"

The dark-haired man let out a sigh and nodded, "Fine..."

* * *

The three finally arrived at Baker Street, who knew shopping could be so exhausting! Sherlock helped Molly put everything away and then disappeared downstairs, she didn't know if he went out or if he went to pay Mrs. Hudson a visit. Molly then changed Charlie's diaper and set her on the floor to play with her toys,

"Toby." she cooed.

The cat appeared from Sherlock's bedroom, Toby had a habit of going into his room and sleeping on his bed. Sherlock would often storm out and snap at her about how her _feline_ was leaving fur on his bed. Molly suggested he closed his bedroom door, to which he said something along the lines of _"I live here; I shouldn't have to shut the door if I don't want to." _Molly didn't bother arguing with Sherlock, she knew he'd learn his lesson eventually, although, he didn't seem to complain much about it anymore, she suspected the two came into an agreement. Molly was pouring Toby his food when Sherlock reappeared with a satisfied look on his face.

"Get dressed." he said as he strode towards her.

Molly put the cat foot away and tilted her head curiously, "Why? Where are we going?"

Sherlock looked at her and let out a hum, "I suggest something red." he said as he ignored her question.

"Ok..." she said in a confused tone, "But where are we going?"

"Out."

"What about Charlie?" Her eyes settled on the infant happily playing with her dolls, before her eyes settled back on Sherlock's.

"Mrs. Hudson agreed to watch her for a few hours." he replied.

Oh so that was where he had gone, Molly finally nodded and gave him a smile, "Ok, where are we going?"

Sherlock smirked and went to pick up Charlie, "We are going out to dinner."

With that he walked out the flat with Charlie, leaving Molly standing in the kitchen. She was going to dinner with Sherlock Holmes, just the two of them together, alone. Molly sucked in a breath and looked down at an eating Toby, why was she so nervous? It was only dinner after all.

* * *

Dinner with Sherlock was going surprisingly well, he took her to a restaurant called Angelo's which apparently Sherlock happened to be good friends with the owner, something about getting him off a murder charge he was innocent of (it turns out he was too busy breaking into a house on the other side of London) he was an amusing fellow, and even put a candle on their table (as some sort of joke she presumed).

"Are you actually going to eat?" she asked as she scanned the menu.

"Of course I am why would you ask?"

Molly peeked at Sherlock from the menu and crinkled her nose, "You're not looking at your menu."

The dark-haired man leaned in and gave her an amused look, "Let me guess... you know the menu?"

Sherlock nodded, "I come here a lot."

"You do?"

Sherlock nodded and grabbed his glass of water and took a long drink from it, Molly watched as the muscles of his neck moving with every swallow. Geez Molly, can you be less obvious? Sherlock set his glass down and pressed his fingers together and watched her, Molly quickly focused her attention on the menu.

"What do you recommend?" she asked a little too quickly.

"Hm, I recommend the Chicken Alfredo." he said casually.

"What are you getting?"

"The lasagna."

"...And you like... lasagna?"

Sherlock rose his brow causing Molly to blush, "It's just... You're usually not... expressive of what types of foods you like. You usually just eat whatever I make."

Sherlock shrugged, "I like your cooking so there's no need for me to be..._expressive._"

Again Molly turned a shade of red, Angelo came back with a bottle of wine and took their orders once he was gone Sherlock poured her some wine before pouring himself some.

"So... You said you come here often." she commented.

"Yes, I did say that."

"...On dates? Do you even date?" she asked curiously, Molly wasn't aware of Sherlock ever dating anyone... At one point she suspected he was seeing a woman because he was x-raying her phone, she recalled that horrible feeling in the pit of her stomach when she thought Sherlock actually had a girlfriend...at one point she even though him and John were a couple. Molly couldn't imagine Sherlock taking someone on a date, holding the door open and being surprisingly charming. But then again she never imagined Sherlock taking care of a child, but here we were.

"Someone once told me a date was something two people who like each other go out and have fun." he said nonchalantly.

Molly giggled and reached out for her wine glass, "That would mean _we're _on a date."

Sherlock pressed his lips into a line and watched her drink her wine and suddenly, "Wait!" she said quickly, "Are _we _on a date?"

"If that's what you want to call it."

Molly stared at him, "Why are you doing this?" she said suddenly.

"Doing what?" he said innocently.

"_This_." she waved her hand at the air, "Taking me out, being nice..."

"I'm always nice, Molly." he scoffed.

Molly rolled her eyes causing him to scowl, "You know what I mean." she muttered.

Sherlock chuckled and leaned back on his chair, "I thought you deserved it." he said simply, "You've done a wonderful job at taking care of both Charlotte and myself, even Mrs. Hudson when she was sick and even..." he hesitated, "The _feline._"

Molly giggled, "Oh shut up, you like Toby."

"I don't know why you insisted on calling him _Toby _that's a human name." he scoffed.

Molly's giggle turned into full blown laughter, a few couples turned to look at her, "You like him, admit it. You don't complain about him sleeping on your bed anymore."

Sherlock glared at her, "I do admit he's rather...entertaining, but he's an idiot." he stated, "Charlotte and I shone a light at him and watched him chase it for hours when you went to the store, we would turn it off and he would act as if nothing ever happened. You're feline is an idiot."

"You're an idiot." she muttered.

"Hardly." he scoffed.

* * *

Molly and Sherlock walked down Baker Street laughing and retelling random stories, mostly about silly things that had happened around the lab, or funny things Charlie did, even good memories about John and Mary.

"But you did ruin her dress." said Molly between giggles.

"It's not my fault the waiter resembled the man John and I were after."

"You _ruined_ her dress, it belonged to her grandmother you know. She spent a lot of money trying to modernize it."

"It didn't look that nice." he said, "Plus, she forgave me."

"Yes, I'm still wondering why Mary had a soft side for you."

"It was because I was John's best friend."

"...Right, or maybe she knew how big of a baby you are."

Sherlock made a face causing her burst out laughing, "I'm not a baby." he pouted.

"Yes you are!" she teased

Molly followed Sherlock up the stairs to the flat, everything was quiet so she figured Mrs. Hudson and Charlie were already asleep, as they entered their flat Sherlock helped her take off her coat before removing his own.

"Do you miss them?" he said suddenly.

"John and Mary? Of course I do... Do you?" she asked curiously.

Molly turned to look at him and watched him nod, "Especially John." he admitted.

Molly could tell he was uncomfortable, but he needed to talk about his feelings so she urged him on.

"Sometimes I... really need to talk to him." he told her.

"You can talk to me if you want." she told him.

Sherlock quickly shook his head and walked up to her, "I can't."

"And why not?"

"Because..." he looked into her eyes and let out a sigh, "I want to talk to him about you."

"What do you mean?"

"My problems, Molly!" he exclaimed, "My problem is you!"

Molly frowned, "Excuse me?"

"No! I didn't mean it like that!" he let out a groan and took a hold of her hand, when Molly didn't pull back he gripped it tighter, "It's just..."

Molly had never seen Sherlock so flustered it was almost a little scary, she was so used to this cool and collective man that seeing him so...lost made her scared, she didn't know what to do. Molly gave him a reassuring smile,

"If you will just tell me what the problem is I'm sure we could fix it."

Her smile caused Sherlock to groan, "Stop that!"

"Stop what?"

"That thing you keep doing!"

"What? Smiling? I'm only try**—**"

Molly didn't get a chance to finish her sentence since Sherlock pulled her to him and pressed his lips against hers, Molly didn't pull away only encouraging Sherlock to keep going. A part of her wanted to pull away and talk to him about this, but her mind went temporarily blank with bliss. The kiss was soft almost as if he was trying to learn what she liked, but there was also an urgency of repressed tension in there on both ends. Molly clung on to him and deepened their kiss, she didn't want to pull away from him, who needed oxygen right? Sherlock suddenly pulled back from her swollen lips and smirked, he then looking into her eyes, dilated she noted.

"Good night, Molly." he said in a husky tone.

Without waiting for her response he strode away from her and entered his room leaving Molly confused (and slightly aroused) in the middle of the sitting room,

"What the hell was that?" she whispered to herself, "And why didn't I stop it?"


	11. Chapter 11

_Hello readers! I'm soooo sorry for leaving for so long! I've had a terrible case of writers block that took forever to go away! But recently the inspiration to write has come back (at least for this story) I'm happy to say that I already know how it's going to end! I love when I figure out the endings to my stories, but don't worry, we still have a little while before this story actually ends so that good right? Right?_

_Thank you all for being so patient with me and thank you for all the nice reviews and PM's from some of you asking if I was alright and generally encouraging me! You don't know how much it means to me!_

_Now that I'm back, I'll start updating every two or so days, I wish I had more time to write, but I have two jobs and school I'm surprise I even have the time to keep three stories and update them regularly._

_I must be some new type of superperson or something, hehehe._

_Anyways, enough rambling, enjoy the chapter!_

* * *

Sherlock didn't mention the kiss and therefore made Molly too nervous to say anything about it, the morning after their "date" Molly was afraid of what would happen between them, what if Sherlock regretted everything and told her everything was a big misunderstanding, or maybe he'd tell her to move out. So many scenarios went on in her silly little head, but at the end he ended up acting like nothing ever happened... and that was good right? Molly walked into the kitchen and suddenly her mobile pinged she looked down at the message and let out a sigh.

_Hey, Mols! What time is the party? -D_

Molly hadn't exactly mentioned the kiss to Daniel, how could she? The man who ultimately ruined their first date now ends up kissing her? He would think that Sherlock had _feelings _for her... Did he? Molly wasn't really sure herself, she thought his changed behaviour was because of Charlie, the young girl had really managed to calm Sherlock down a little, although his old self did come out, it just wasn't as bad as before, maybe she was just used to him? Either way, telling Daniel about their kiss was completely out of the question. Molly pressed the reply button and typed:

_It starts at 3! See you then! xM_

Molly pocketed her phone and began taking the ingredients she needed for the cake out of the pantry, she had three hours until the party and that was enough time to finish baking, decorate the house, and get her and Charlie ready. Speaking of Charlie where was she? Molly turned around as she heard the door open and in came Sherlock clutching the child in his hands,

"We were downstairs with Mrs. Hudson." he announced.

Molly smiled at them and began tying her hair up in a ponytail, "I'm going to bake Charlie's cake, do you want to help?"

Sherlock nodded, "Let me just put Charlie in her play pin."

* * *

"Sherlock could you pre-heat the oven? I'll get the bowls."

As Sherlock went to pre-heat the oven he heard the clattering of Molly behind him, after their kiss a few days ago Sherlock had become more confused than ever, he didn't know how to go on about these new emotions and honestly they were becoming frustrating. He hated feeling this way, if John were here he'd tell him to go for it, to make Molly his... But she was with another... What would John say then? He'd probably tell him to let her be... that she deserved someone better than him... He was right, but Sherlock being... Well Sherlock knew he had to do the opposite. Why couldn't he be with Molly? After their shared kiss it was obvious that she wanted him as much as he wanted her. It was time for an experiment, he would prove to Molly that he was worth it and she would see that he was far better for her than _Daniel._

"Sherlock? A little help? I can't reach." she heard her say.

Sherlock turned around and looked over at her, Molly was on her toes trying to reach for the glass bowls in the cabinet over the sink. Sherlock walked up behind her, his body lightly grazing hers as she reached over for the bowls, he could feel his pulse elevating as she lightly touched his hands to retrieve them. Molly smiled shyly and mumbled a thank you as she walked over to the table to set down the bowls.

"Ok, you mix in all our dry ingredients and I'll start on the wet ones, we'll combine them together."

Sherlock took the cake flour and the rest of the dry ingredients Molly handed him, while she focused on getting her milk, eggs, and vanilla into her own bowl.

"I thought we were making a chocolate cake." said Sherlock as he concentrated with his measurements.

"Charlie doesn't like chocolate remember?" she replied.

"Nonsense, every child likes chocolate."

"Well Charlie doesn't. Remember when we bought her that chocolate muffin when we went out for lunch she barely touched it."

Sherlock looked up at Molly, she wasn't looking at him he watched her tucked back a loose string of hair behind her ear, much like she did when she was back at Bart's his lips twitched into a smile briefly before she looked up at him.

"What?" she said half amused half curiously.

"N-Nothing." he said quickly and went back to his work.

The two worked in comfortable silence, occasionally they would talk or comment on what each other was doing. Sherlock watched her work out of the corner of his eye, she seemed shakier than usual, on occasion the two would bump into each other or their hands would brush against each other when they tried reaching for stuff, this would cause Molly to blush and Sherlock to feel the same tingly feeling he had when they kissed. Sherlock helped but the batter in the cake pan and watched her as she put the cake in the oven, she came back and began licking the leftover batter from the spoon, and Sherlock couldn't help but watched her tongue intensely.

"Do you want some?" she asked curiously.

Sherlock cleared his throat, "You're not supposed to eat raw cake batter." he said quickly, "It's one of those rule things... You'll die or something."

Molly shrugged and continued to lick the spoon, "I've done it all my life and I'm not dead."

Sherlock continued to watch her and Molly let out a laugh, "Come on just try it!"

She leaned forward and motioned the spoon towards his lips, Sherlock took a hold of her wrist and immediately felt her pulse quicken and her eyes dilate, Sherlock pulled her closer that their faces were a few inches from each other, Molly licked her lips nervously which only caused Sherlock to focus his attention on her mouth, he leaned in close enough to feel her breath against his face.

"Sherlock..." she sighed nervously.

Before Sherlock could make his move, they heard a knock on the door, "Yoo-hoo!"

Mrs. Hudson came in and looked at them, "Oh!" she squeaked, Sherlock pulled away and Molly blushed red, "Was I interrupting? I could come b**—**"

"No!" squeaked Molly, "I mean... No, you weren't interrupting anything."

Sherlock looked over at Molly before looking at Mrs. Hudson, "Molly's right. You weren't interrupting anything."

He made his way to the play pin to check on Charlotte, he could still hear what Mrs. Hudson and Molly were talking about, "I just came by to see if you needed any help with the decorating, I hung up some balloons outside so everyone knows there's a party going!" said Mrs. Hudson excitingly.

Sherlock rolled his eyes as both women began talking animatedly about decorating, he looked down at Charlotte who was wobbling up to him and leaning against the play pin.

"Da-da!" she said excitedly as he approached her, she lifted her arms up indicating that she wanted to picked up and Sherlock happily obliged.

"Da-da!" she squeaked happily.

Sherlock kissed her cheek and walked over to his chair, he shoo'd Toby from it before sitting down and bouncing the toddler on his leg, he didn't mind Charlotte identifying him as her father, he rather enjoyed it. It did make him feel a twinge of guilt because he felt like he was betraying John in a way, it made him wonder if Molly felt the same way when she called her _mummy,_ he was sure she did because he would often see her face when Charlotte called her that, he would see the pain in her face before that smile would re-appear. The consulting detective let out a sigh he knew John and Mary wouldn't want them to feel guilty about this, they would want them to enjoy spending time with their daughter... they were technically Charlotte's parents since they were raising her after all... Well not _technically _at least not yet, they still had three more months to go to see if they were deemed worthy to continue caring for Charlotte so far it seemed to be going good or so he hoped.

"Sherlock?" he heard Molly's voice say.

Sherlock looked up at Molly and Mrs. Hudson, "Do you want to help decorate, dear?" said the older woman.

Sherlock nodded and set Charlotte back in her play pin before going to help the two women.


	12. Chapter 12

_Yay! We're finally at the party! So, I needed kids for the part so I had some of our lovely characters have some. I also wanted Mycroft there so Mycroft has children, yay! _

_I want to thank all of you who are sticking with the story! It's so many of you... hi? Um, let's see.. Oh! Thanks for reviewing! I keep getting those little notifications throughout the day and it makes me absolutely happy! _

_Enjoy the chapter!_

* * *

What the hell was happening!? That was all Molly could think for the rest of the day, whatever this was with Sherlock was just as confusing as ever and yet, she seemed to be _liking _it... What the hell was wrong with _her_? After they finished decorating, Sherlock went to buy a few extra things for the party, leaving Molly and Charlie alone in the flat for once Molly was a little relieved that Sherlock agreed to go... it gave her time to think. As she took Charlie a bath she replayed the scene over and over in her head wondering what would have happened if Mrs. Hudson hadn't interrupted, would they have kissed? Would they have...? Molly blushed at the thought and shook her head.

"Don't be silly." she breathed.

After Charlie's bath, Molly dressed her up (in an adorable purple dress that Sherlock bought her) she then asked Mrs. Hudson to watch her while she got ready herself, the party was in less than an hour and Sherlock still wasn't back, she hoped that the incident from earlier didn't upset him... He didn't seem upset while they decorated, but he did seem a little too eager to leave the flat (Maybe he needed time to think), but then again Molly wasn't really good at reading Sherlock's emotions, unlike her, he knew how to hide them well. The brunette dressed in a pair of dark trousers and a purple vest, she paired it off with a floral cardigan that almost had the same pattern as Charlie's dress. Once she was done Molly trotted out of her room and headed to the living room where Mrs. Hudson and Charlie sat.

"Mum-my!" squeaked Charlie when she saw her.

Molly smiled at the girl and went to pick her up, "Hello, my birthday girl." she cooed.

They heard a knock on the door and Mrs. Hudson got up, "Those must be the first guests, I'll go fetch them."

Molly nodded and began walking to the kitchen with Charlie in her arms, "I'll lay out the food." she told Mrs. Hudson as she hurried downstairs.

* * *

It didn't take long for the guests to arrive. They had invited Stamford (His wife and two children), Lestrade and his three children (Jenny, Alex, and Peter), Mary's mother Elizabeth, Harry, Clara, and their six year old son Jefferey. Molly had also invited Mycroft, after Sherlock had told him he had two girls, but he never called her back to let her know if he was coming or not, the pathologist shrugged and made her way to her guests. Mrs. Morstan happily bounced Charlie up in down and Molly watched them happily, she had to remember to schedule regular visits with Elizabeth so she could see her granddaughter more often.

"You're doing a good job at taking care of her." said Harry.

Molly looked away from Charlie and smiled at Harry, "You really think so?"

"Yes, John and Mary did a very good job at picking you to care of Charlie." said Mrs. Morstan suddenly.

"I wouldn't say much about Sherlock." chimed Harry bitterly.

Molly was aware of Harry's dislike for Sherlock, but she hoped her sour attitude towards him didn't ruin the party.

"Sherlock's doing an amazing job at taking care of her." she said a little too defensively.

Harry scoffed and took a sip of her punch, Molly could smell the alcohol coming from the cup when Molly was about to open her mouth to comment, but she spotted the consulting detective enter the flat with a few grocery bags in his hands. His eyes immediately settled on Molly's before scowling at Harry.

"Harriet." he said in a monotone voice.

"Sherlock." she spat dryly.

Molly let out a sigh, and then heard the door downstairs and Molly got up, "I'll get that." she said quickly, she looked at Sherlock as she passed him, "Behave." she warned.

"Don't I always?" he replied in an amused tone.

Molly glared playfully at him, "I'm serious."

"Fine." he sighed.

Molly gave him a small smile before trotting downstairs to open the door.

xXx

Molly opened the door and blinked in surprise at the man and two girls standing in front of her.

"Hello, Miss Hooper." said Mycroft.

Molly smiled politely at him before his eyes settled on the two girls in front of him, "These are my daughters."

Both girls curtsies politely and the oldest (around eight years old) smiled at her, "Hello Miss Hooper, my name is Grace and this is my sister Lillian."

The tiny girl who looked around five gave her a shy smile, "She's a little shy." commented Grace.

Molly smiled at the girls, they really looked like part of the Holmes' family they both had thick long dark hair and piercing colored eyes there was features there that were probably from their mother's side from the family, like their delicate wide eyes and their small lips, but nonetheless these girls were gorgeous. "It's nice to meet you. You can call me Molly if you want."

Grace turned to look at her father as if asking for his approval, once Mycroft nodded the girl turned to look at her, "It's a pleasure, Molly. Thank you for inviting us to Charlotte's birthday celebration."

Molly gave them room to enter the flat as she was closing the door she felt a pair of hands quickly stop the door, she looked out to see a tiny woman carrying a big present in her hands.

"Sorry." squeaked Molly and opened the door wider.

"It's fine, Miss Hooper." she huffed.

The woman, Anthea, as Molly now recognized hurried behind Mycroft and his children.

"Wow, those girls are scarily polite." she heard a familiar voice say.

Molly turned her head and made a face when she saw Daniel, she had almost forgotten about him... What a rubbish girlfriend she was. Daniel gave her a boyish grin and held up a tiny pink bag,

"I didn't know what to get her." he told her, "I hope she likes it."

Molly took the bag from him and peeked inside at the stuffed toy cat wearing a pink tutu, "Aw, I'm sure she'll love it. But, you didn't have to buy her a present." she admitted.

Daniel snaked his arm around her waist and planted a kiss on her lips, Molly leaned in awkwardly until the kiss was over, and gave him a polite smile before he motioned him inside, "Shall we? I'd love for you to meet everyone." she said a little too quickly.

Daniel nodded and waited for her to go first.

* * *

Sherlock sat in his chair not listening to what Lestrade or Stamford was saying, he watched Charlie wobble up to him and extend her arms. The consulting detective instinctively lifted her up onto his lap before focusing on the door waiting for Molly to return. Sherlock perked up slightly when he heard footsteps, but quickly went back to a scowl when he noticed Mycroft.

"What are you doing here?" he asked bitterly.

"Miss Hooper invited us."

Sherlock's eyes settled on Grace and Lillian and nodded his hello to the girls, "Hello Uncle." said Grace politely.

Sherlock didn't get to see much of their nieces; they often stayed with his mother in Kensington, "Hello Grace. Lillian. How are you studies going?" he asked the eldest curiously.

"They're going wonderfully! Daddy said I can finally start playing any instrument of my choosing. What do you suggest I play?" she asked him.

Sherlock observed the girl in front of him and took her hand, he examined it lightly before smirking, "I suggest the piano."

"That's what I was thinking." she replied in amusement, "Will you allow Charlotte to play an instrument when she's older?"

Grace smiled at the girl in his lap before turning her attention back to him, "If she wants to play an instrument when she gets older who am I to stop her?"

Grace nodded before patting Charlotte's cheek affectionately, he had to admit Grace was amusing she wasn't as boring as most children her age, she was clever much like his brother and himself, but he didn't know about Lillian, the girl nervously fidgeted behind her sister _not much of a talker _Sherlock observed. Finally, Grace took her sisters hand and looked up at their father,

"Is it alright if we go play with the other children?"she asked him curiously.

Her father nodded and motioned them to go, the girls walked over to the group of kids and soon they were accepted into the group and playing and chatting with each other.

"Well this is interesting." commented Mycroft.

"What is?" sneered Sherlock.

"You." He said with amusement, "You actually conversing with Grace…you've never even uttered a word to my children."

"Last time I saw your children they could barely talk, at least one of them made progress." he commented.

Mycroft glared at him before speaking, "It has been a while hasn't it?" he sneered, "It just shows how long it's been since you've paid mummy a visit."

Sherlock rolled his eyes but Mycroft continued, "I just never thought I'd see so many children in your flat."

"Well we can't have a child's party without children, Mycroft." scoffed Sherlock in reply, Charlie began squirming on his lap and Sherlock let out a sigh, she was probably hungry. He stood up, bringing the child along with him and glanced back at the door (Still wondering why Molly was taking so damn long).

"Do try to control yourself around the sweets, dear brother." he said smugly.

His brother gave him an icy glare which only made Sherlock smirk in return, he then began his walk to the kitchen to grab Charlotte's favorite snacks

"Everyone, this is Daniel..." he heard Molly's voice say suddenly, "...We're together."

Sherlock's head snapped in the direction of Molly's voice, she was standing next to a blond man _average height, lived in America, owns a cat... no, two cats, non-smoker, occasional drinker, pathologist... _he stared at Daniel intensely trying to find something wrong with him, yet, he couldn't. He couldn't find anything he could use to his advantage. Unlike Molly's past lovers, he was in fact _good _for her, this made Sherlock a little jealous. How dare he be good for her? That was _his_ job! This... Daniel needed to back off. Molly looked over at Sherlock and led Daniel over to him, why did she find the need to introduce him? Sherlock had no desire to get acquainted with this man, he was the enemy.

"Daniel, this is—" began Molly.

"Sherlock Holmes." he quickly cut her off, "I'm..." he stopped himself, "Charlotte's other guardian."

Charlie let out a squeal at the mention of her name; the consulting detective patted her back lightly and continued to glare at Daniel.

"So you're the date ruiner." he said, clearly trying to make a joke... or release some tension.

Sherlock didn't care what his intentions were; it didn't make him like him any less. Molly cleared her throat, Sherlock looked at her, she was uncomfortable more fidgety than usual ,why? It suddenly became clear to him, Molly hadn't told him about the kiss that's why she looked so uncomfortable, she was afraid Sherlock would say something. Sherlock mentally smirked to himself, he _could_ tell him, he could do it and they would stop seeing each other, and Molly would be free. But he knew that by telling him it would only upset Molly and the whole point of this '_new him'_ was to show Molly he was a better person for her... If he did this he would just be contradicting himself. Sherlock really hated his ideas sometimes...

"You must be Charlie." said Daniel suddenly as he reached out to pinch her cheek.

Charlie turned her head and buried her face on the crook of Sherlock's neck, obviously wanting no contact with this man whatsoever, good. "Well..." Sherlock a little to quickly, "I was just going to go get Charlotte a snack so if you'll excuse us."

Without a word he turned to the kitchen and pulled the sliding doors close, he let out a sigh and looked over at Charlotte.

"Can you believe _that's _what I'm competing with?" he told the infant.

The girl gave him a blank stare before giving him a toothless smile, "You're right, Charlotte." he said happily, "This is way too easy."


End file.
